The Morning After in the Mourning
by grc73
Summary: Missing scene from 6x22 - what happened when Booth and Brennan woke the morning after? Follows canon, filling in the gaps. Now through 6x23 and beyond. Appallingly fluffy. Strong T. Now complete.
1. Chapter 1

**Hello! back again after a long hiatus of RL. So I have a B&B itch that I've been scratching for a while. Missing scene, 6x22. Not *the* scene (I'm not really an 'M' writer) but the morning after. Yes, it's all been done before but not from my brain and fingers, lol. I watched it again recently and I looked carefully at the body language of Booth and Brennan, especially in their interactions with Shaw and Angela the morning after, and when Brennan and the team learn that "Booth got Broadsky." They were both very distracted and it was clearly not just about the case. I am also convinced that Brennan was absolutely ready.**

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A man and woman lay sleeping, bathed in the gentle glow of the dawn as it filtered through the blinds and scattered like rows of petals over the bed. They were spooning, bodies pressed against each other from head to lower leg, cocooned in the centre of the mattress. His arm was slung protectively over her stomach and in turn, her hand clasped over his. They both looked contented as they rested, a surprising outcome considering the intense emotional pain they had both endured the previous day.

The peace of the scene was disrupted as the clock ticked over to six-thirty and the alarm kicked in. An over-enthusiastic announcer on the radio jabbered away, far too jolly for so early in the morning.

Seeley Booth woke, for one fleeting moment thinking he was dead and in heaven before cracking an eye open just enough to recognise the surroundings as his bedroom, and before the reality of the previous twenty-four hours came rushing back to him. He felt the bittersweet taste of the sting of Vincent Nigel-Murray's senseless killing coupled with a new reality washing over him. A reality where his face was buried in the hair of his partner, inhaling her scent and shampoo and it was the sweetest combination he could have wished for. Best of all, he was holding her like he had imagined doing for seven years. No more lying to themselves. No more lying to each other. No more just "guy hugs". Booth couldn't help but smile to himself. He was going to allow himself just a moment to enjoy it before he felt the weight of the task ahead of him forcibly propel him out of bed and into the treacherous working day.

For Temperance Brennan, the first two feelings she had listed in her head as she became aware of her situation upon regaining consciousness were how safe and comfortable she felt, and then how ludicrously tired she was. She then became aware of three more things - one, that she was completely naked in the arms of one Seeley Booth, the night clothes he had lent her were now scattered across his bedroom floor; two, he was also naked and that nature was taking its usual course for a grown man first thing in the morning, which got her more than a little turned on as he was pressed firmly against her at the time; and finally, that her deep feelings of grief for the situation that had presented the previous day were being somewhat buried under a sense of elation and a buzzing in the pit of her stomach that she could not ignore. Brennan felt no need to run. She was exactly where she wanted to be. Despite her dislike of the premise of ownership between people, she knew she now belonged to Booth, and he to her. At least it felt equitable and to her surprise, she rather liked the feeling. Her heart had finally opened when she walked into his bedroom at four forty-seven that morning and settled in his arms. When she realised it could have been him that died that day Brennan knew she couldn't fight her feelings any more. She was in love with him and that was OK. It was at that point that she'd kissed him and then followed the series of events that had lead to her now laying curled against him with a certain type of contentment. She felt torn for not feeling terribly guilty about this, immensely sad though she remained for her favourite intern's demise.

For a few minutes they both continued with their pretence that they were sleeping. The advantage of their positioning allowed a lack of eye contact that would delay the mutual admission that they were both awake, when they could no longer ignore the gravity of the overall situation that required their input as experts in their fields. However, the rational Brennan knew that they had a murder to solve and she owed it to her intern to ensure that Joseph Broadsky was brought to justice. So she turned over to face the man whose name she had moaned out several times in pleasure less than two hours before. As she moved, lifting his hand enough to enable her movement, Brennan noted he had bed hair, some stubble, and his dark eyes gazed across at her in anticipation. In summary, he looked irresistible. Her heart raced. She felt herself take the tiniest breath to calm herself before she spoke.

"Hi." She quirked a lop-sided smile at him.

"Hi yourself." Booth smiled back and brushed some hair away from Brennan's face, then stroked her cheek. "How did you sleep, Bones?"

"All in all, not so great, but better after we..." Her voice trailed off, not entirely sure how to define their activities from the night before. Brennan looked at him with pleading eyes.

".. Made love?" - Booth was sure that was what she meant but there was a hint of hesitation, even in his voice.

"Yes."

"You know" he looked at her lovingly. "I meant every word I said."

"Every word? Because you made some profound statements when we... made love..."

"Yes. And so, as I recall, did you. Things I never thought I would hear from your mouth, Bones." He winked. She felt the colour rise up through her cheeks. Booth continued. "Yes. I meant every word, and not because of Vincent, or Broadsky, or stadium seating and burned papers. I love you, Temperance. I have for so long now. I can't remember a time I didn't." He leant in and kissed her on the lips. Brennan responded immediately and for a moment they let themselves be carried away in the moment. Kissing Booth also meant not thinking about everything else, despite her initial resolve to the contrary. Everything became more heated, especially the parts of them still under the covers, and as the DJ announced a new song, the heavy drum beat jolted Booth back to reality and reluctantly, he pulled away.

"Booth?" Brennan looked concerned, wondering what she had done wrong. He pressed his forehead against hers and sighed.

"We can't do this now, Bones. Don't get me wrong, it would be so easy to play this one out and hell, Baby, I have had fantasies about waking up next to you for years, being very late for work..." he grinned like a Cheshire Cat and couldn't resist her when she pulled him back in for another quick kiss "- but for Vincent's sake, and the team's, and ours, we need to get on with what we have to do today. I have a tactical briefing at eight-fifteen. You have a cause of death to confirm. Besides, knowing what I can look forward to with you later gives me something positive to focus on if I get nervous. You understand, right?"

Brennan nodded.

"I find your words soothing and yet rational simultaneously. I feel bad for Vincent and I recognise a part of me is grieving. I turned over to wake you because I knew we couldn't put off the tasks we must accomplish today. From a logical standpoint, we've been controlling ourselves for seven years anyway, so another day is going to make minimal difference. Whilst I could happily remain in situ with you in this bed for much of the day from both a sexual and practical safety perspective, I understand that we have jobs to do and we need to get up." Booth sat up and looked down at her from his new vantage point. He hair was tousled and her eyes still showed signs of fatigue and tears, but she looked beautiful. All he could look at were those big blue sleepy eyes looking up at him.

"That's my girl. When this is over, hopefully tonight - when I can can find Broadsky and bring him in, we can take a couple of days off and remain "_in situ_" together, with no interruptions."

"That sounds acceptable." There was a pause. Brennan's voice took on a serious tone and her brow furrowed slightly. "You know I trust you, Booth. I have faith in your abilities to catch Broadsky. I just wanted you to know that." He smiled at her, leaned down to gave her one final peck on the nose, before stretching, swinging his legs out of the bed and rescuing his jockeys from the floor where they had been flung some two hours earlier.

"We'll do right by your squintern. And I have every intention of coming back here tonight with you and finishing what we just started. So, bathroom first or second, Bones?"

Brennan thought for a second. The cogs turned and her face lightened up somewhat.

"Well, we both need to get clean..." Brennan considered "...perhaps we can help each other with that? Logically it would conserve water and time if we were to shower together." And with that she climbed out of bed and sauntered over to bedroom door, still completely naked, where she paused.

"Are you coming, Booth?" She gave a coy look over her shoulder and then continued on her way.

"OK Bones, but cleaning only. No hanky panky..." He followed her down the hall quite quickly. If Broadsky wasn't going to kill him, Bones surely would. But at least he would die a happy man.

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_**I don't write specifically for reviews but providing they are positive or at least constructive they are always welcomed, thank you. **_


	2. Chapter 2

**Wow, a load lovely reviews, follows and favourites gets a girl writing fast! Thank you all so much!**

**And now a tag for the end of 6x22. A missing set of scenes. A little angst, some fluff. Fluffy angst if you will.**

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As they watched the car containing Vincent Nigel Murray's coffin roll away in to the distance, Angela saw Brennan take Booth's arm and lean into him. Booth smiled gently to himself. This was the first time she'd seen them interact like this with the truth between them finally out in the open - at least open between the two of them, if no one else. The look between them when Brennan had arrived with her plant - so sweet, so Brennan; Angela's heart skipped a beat. And now again, she saw everything she needed to in those simple gestures. Love, comfort, protection - in the horror of what had happened the previous day something wonderful had been born.

She'd seen the paradigm-shift earlier, the look on Brennan's face when she had taken the call from Special Agent Shaw that Broadsky had been captured. Booth was out of danger. They shared a moment, an acknowledgement. It was times like this that Angela was thankful that as someone who was of the few people who duly understood Brennan, she could legitimately share in the joy of her friend, even amongst the sadness in the background.

Angela knew Booth and Brennan had slept together. Brennan had been quite clear about that in the bone examination room, when Angela had re-commenced her interrogation after Jack had **almost** ruined the moment, but hadn't really elaborated on the emotion, just really on the facts - of course, a very Brennan-like thing to do. A tentative kiss, which led to much less tentative kissing, which led to the removal of clothing, leading to an encounter that although in its description functional, rather than romantic, Brennan had given herself away with more than the faintest hint of dreaminess in her eyes. It had been most satisfactory, Booth had been a very considerate lover and in the morning they had almost been late for the office as they'd repeated the act in the shower. _Brennan, you have no idea, _thought Angela; _You have only scratched the surface - you have got a whole marvellous world of exploring to do..._

But when Angela could really tell that the entire Booth-Brennan Universe had shifted? That the look she'd given Ange up in the gallery. Angela understood everything in that moment. Even though these would have been the most unlikely words ever out of Doctor Temperance Brennan's mouth, it was etched all over her face.

_The love of my life is safe, I can breathe again. My God that was scary. I love him so much, Ange._

Part of her wanted to go over and hug them both, but she knew it wasn't the right time. They needed privacy. She turned and walked inside, her heart awash with happiness that her best friend and her favourite FBI agent had finally made the leap. Hugs would come later.

After a few seconds, Booth turned and Brennan with him, still attached to his arm. They slowly walked back into the Jeffersonian loading bay. Brennan reluctantly let go. They hadn't talked about it explicitly yet but they both knew it was still too early for the rest of the world to know they were together.

"So", ventured Sweets to the assembled group, "Founding Fathers?"

Hodgins started to open his mouth to affirm the suggestion - it would be good to send off Vincent with a bottle of something cold, but Angela managed to second-guess him and gave him a subtle kick on the ankle before any sound could come out. She knew Brennan needed rest. She knew Booth and Brennan needed some quality time alone and there was no way Sweets was going to delay that. Once again, Jack was a little baffled at his wife's behaviour. He put it down to late-pregnancy hormones and the strain of recent events. He decided it best to leave things as they were.

Booth didn't even glance at Brennan. He didn't have to. Instead he gave a fleeting glance at Angela - _she clearly knows_ he realised as he saw a glimpse of his own happiness reflected in her face. If Angela was trying to hide looking pleased, then Brennan must have said something positive. That was enough for him. He stretched.

"I think I need to call it a day. I'm kinda tired. You need a lift, Bones?"

"Sure, thanks Booth."

Cam cleared her throat.

"Before everyone leaves, I want the Jeffersonian staff to take 2 days off. It's been a draining couple of days and I think we could all do with a break. Take a long weekend and I'll see you all Monday. Booth, I spoke with Andrew Hacker and recommended the same for you too." Booth nodded in appreciation.

"But what about me?" asked Sweets.

"You're a psychologist, you can work it out for yourself." Booth tried not to smirk. _Just a little bit of payback._

Thank-yous were uttered in the direction of Cam from the others and the team headed towards the Jeffersonian car park, where they disbanded and headed in the directions of their various cars.

Hodgins noticed Booth's SUV and then just a few spaces down, Brennan's Prius.

"Angie, why isn't Dr B taking her car?"

"Because they don't need two cars to go back to the same apartment." Angela whispered conspiratorially.

Hodgins took a moment before the penny dropped.

"Ohhhhhhh. Cool." She smiled at him. "About time!"

"Not a word to anyone, Jack. Let them have some privacy."

* * *

The ride back to Booth's apartment was quiet. Booth spent the journey in quiet contemplation and the cogs in Brennan's brain were turning as usual but she wasn't saying anything, just mostly starting out the window into the cool DC evening, occasionally glancing over at him a little anxiously.

"You OK, Bones?"

"Just a little tired. Very tired actually."

They parked up outside Booth's apartment and Booth took Brennan's hand as she opened the car door. They took the lift up to Booth's floor. He rubbed her thumb with his as they stood in the lift and smiled at her. She gave a weak smile back. Booth had an inkling that something was not right but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

As soon as they were over the apartment threshold and the front door was clicked shut; before Booth could even get his coat off, he was almost crushed by Brennan's arms around him, topped off by an equally crushing kiss on the mouth. She seemed almost possessed and intent on breaking some laws of physics with all of their clothes still on. He decided that under the circumstances, resistance would be futile and it was easier just to go with it, so he responded to her and they remained bonded together, mouth-to-mouth with some roaming hands for several minutes. When oxygen became a major problem, they both pulled back for air.

"Wow! Not that I mind, but what was that fo- ?" As Booth pulled back to give her a thousand-watt smile he was shocked to see her sobbing. "Hey." He put his finger under her chin. "Don't cry. I'm right here." He pulled her back in for another hug.

"I nearly lost you twice in two days!" The sound of her distraught voice muffled into his shoulder. She was emotionally exhausted and clearly upset.

"Oh Baby, I'm here, I'm here. You have been through so much." He stroked her hair with one hand as the other caressed her back. "Shhhhhh. It's OK. Let it out."

"Is this how it's going to be now? am I going to feel like this every time you attempt to apprehend a suspect?" Brennan cried almost uncontrollably in Booth's arms much like she had done the previous night, only this time they were still standing at his front door. If Sweets had been there, he would have suggested that the dam had now proverbially broken. Booth knew Brennan needed rest, tea and love, probably in about equal measure. He pulled back and put his hands on her shoulders.

"I think you just now have an outlet for something you felt already. Love can be hard to handle sometimes, Bones. You never had the chance really express how your feelings before because we were both so tied up in knots trying to hide how we really felt. Your brain is just trying to catch up with your heart. It just feels overwhelming. Actually, it'll probably always feel a little overwhelming but over time you get used to that feeling and you learn to enjoy it. Loving someone - really loving someone - has ups and downs, all the time. Welcome to the roller coaster." He chuckled and squeezed her shoulders. Brennan sniffed and gave Booth another weak, but genuine smile. He then guided her into the lounge, where he set her down gently on the couch.

"Bones, I'm going to get you some tea. Just stay there and I'll be right back. He kissed her head and went to his kitchen where he took out the box of her camomile tea and grab her a tissue. Since Hannah had left and Brennan had slowly returned fully into Booth's life, he'd started re-stocking some of her favourite items in his cupboards.

He brought out her tea and placed it carefully on his coffee table. He sat down next to her, grabbed his remote and slung his arm round the back of her shoulder whilst he put his feet up.

"Let's find something old on TCM, yeah?" Brennan nodded. Still sniffing slightly but having regained some composure, She cuddled into him and slipped her arm across his stomach. And there they sat, watching a black and white movie, snuggled up until she fell asleep in his arms.

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**It's (possibly) not over yet! There's the long weekend; and period between 6x22 and 6x23 to deal with, if there's any demand...? ;)**

**Positive and constructive reviews always welcomed. **


	3. Chapter 3

**Thank you to *so* many people who have reviewed, followed and faved. Awesome! For that, you get some extra words this chapter. ;) BTW I am looking for a beta - tricky to check your own work because you get too close to it, so if anyone's willing, that would be most appreciated, please PM me.**

**Particular thanks to ale2695 for their bi-lingual review - I will try and work some lab lovin' into a later chapter!**

**More hopelessly romantic drivel coming in this chapter, I am a fluff monster.**

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The sound that woke Brennan the next day was that of a car horn at street level. She looked across at the alarm clock, which read 12:05. She had slept for fourteen hours. Booth was not in bed with her, perhaps not surprising as she had been so lethargic. Then she heard some out-of-tune singing coming from down the hall and the smell of something pleasant, although her olfactory sense couldn't quite pick up the nuance of what he was cooking. Something sort of buttery, possibly sweet; and she could definitely smell coffee. She sat up and took stock of her situation. Today she was clothed, still in her shirt, bra and panties from the night before but her trousers had been removed. At some point Booth must have carried her to bed and tried to make her more comfortable. Her stomach made a most unladylike sound - she was hungry for the first time in days.

She was about to climb out of bed when Booth appeared at the door with a plate of pancakes and coffees on a tray, complete with a daisy in a jar And a grin on his face.

"Morning Bones! Awww, I was going to wake you up with kisses and breakfast in bed."

"Technically it's afternoon, Booth." She gave a mock frown and smiled back at him.

"Good afternoon then." He put the tray down and kissed her lightly, then pulled back to study her. Pleasingly her eyes looked a lot less puffy than the night before and she longer appeared distraught.

"I'm sorry I slept so long."

"You clearly needed your sleep. It's no problem."

"Yes. I believe my brain has processed the events of the last two days sufficiently whilst I was asleep to address any major chemical imbalances. I feel rested, though I find a combination of feelings I am experiencing still unnerving. I still feel so sad about Vincent. I've experienced grief before, Booth, but this feels so raw. And yet -" she gave him a coy smile and looked away awkwardly "- I also feel elated. It should feel wrong, Booth, but it doesn't."

"That rawness is because it was shocking and you were right there, Bones. Like I said, I've lost comrades in battle, I empathise with what you are feeling. It's important to remember that you have me right here and we can talk as much or as little as you want." He gazed at her for a moment before picking up the tray again and walking round to the other side - his side? of the bed. He sat down and replaced the tray, this time on her lap. "As for that feeling of elation? I can help you with that too." He leaned over and they kissed, though remaining careful not to spill brunch all over the bed. "Nope, nothing wrong with that." He winked. "So we have pancakes with fruit and maple syrup and nice strong coffee. You hungry? I hope you're hungry."

"Actually my stomach rumbled a moment ago, which alongside impulses from my brain that make me believe my stomach is empty, indicate that my body would be ready to ingest some food. Thank you Booth, this looks lovely."

"To be honest, I had nothing much fresh in so I popped down to the store and bought a few things, including several very unhealthy snacks and some beers. Sometimes, you need to let loose a little. I think we should let loose for the next four days, Bones. But first, I think you should eat this delicious plate of pancakes before they get cold..."

* * *

Later, that afternoon, snuggled under the covers and very much naked again, Brennan's hand splayed over Booth's chest and her leg hooked over his. Booth cradled her and pressed his face into her hair - his new favourite hobby seemed to be inhaling Brennan at close range.

"Nothing like a 'Nooner" sighed Booth.

"That was very satisfying." agreed Brennan, her face a picture of contentment. This time, the third time they had made love, had been much more relaxed than the previous encounters. Their first time was much about finding comfort in each other's arms and numbing out the pain as it had been about the release of seven years of pent-up sexual attraction. The second time started innocently enough as per Booth's request in the shower. He washed her hair, she sponged his back, but soon temptation had proven too great for the both of them and one too many meaningful looks ended up with tangled tongues and roaming hands. This involved the tricky logistics of Booth's shower stall, which was not as easy to negotiate as one might expect for such physically able people, and they had ended up in a giggly, messy pile of limbs and bodies on the floor. It had at least lightened the mood for a few minutes.

This time had been slow and languid, exploratory in nature and quite, quite thorough in its execution. For the moment Brennan was keeping count of every facet of their love-making, cataloging it all in her brain for future reference until certain processes became second nature. in the meantime she would continue to be thorough. _Very thorough..._

Booth chuckled. "Well I'm glad you thought so, Bones. It helped that we weren't on the clock this time."

"So what are we going to do now?"

That question took Booth back to Jack and Angela's aborted wedding. Brennan had had a certain intonation in her voice when she'd originally said it that he'd found really sexy at the time. Back came memories of Billy; those crazy bridesmaids dresses Cam had fixed (what had Angela been thinking?); Max - _woah_! What was Max going to say when found finally out Booth was screwing his daughter? Actually Booth was fairly sure Max would be pretty happy.

"Tonight I want to take you out, Bones. I want us to go on a real, bone fide date. You dress nice, I dress nice, we go to a nice restaurant and eat nice food. Chat some, and then, if you play your cards right, I might even kiss you."

Brennan looked puzzled.

"I assume your card comment is metaphorical as you neglected to clarify which game; but Booth, we've already engaged in intercourse, there is no need for you to try and woo me. We both know that from our initial couplings we are very compatible and it is extremely likely that we will engage in intercourse again this evening, and perhaps even again this afternoon. We have a **lot** of time to make up." At which point, Brennan grinned at him and wiggled her eyebrows in an overly suggestive way.

"But Bones, I _want_ to woo you, and I want to _keep_ wooing you. It doesn't matter how many times we have '_intercourse_' " - he made quotes signs with his fingers, "I want to be able to take you places and be with you without any stupid lines in place. To touch you, to kiss you whenever I like, and for you to do the same. I don't want to have to find an excuse to hug you any more."

"But those guy hugs...?"

"Nope..."

"Really?"

"Never."

"Oh."

"Let me give you an example. Remember when we went running a few weeks ago? Instead of just running along side each other, we might hold hands, or kiss at our destination. We didn't do that before. You understand?"

A moment passed.

"Oh! I get it now!" She sat up in excitement, disentangling herself from Booth in the process. "You want to apply societal norms to our relationship wherein you can enact courtship rituals to show potential rivals that I am your mate and I have chosen you." Brennan looked very satisfied with herself.

"Yes! I mean no! What I mean is- that we have no boundaries between us any more. Now c'mere Bones and I'll show you what I mean" and with that he gave her a look worthy of his cocky buckle belt and pulled her back down to him.

* * *

"So Booth?" Brennan called out from across the Jeffersonian car park, I'll take my car back to my apartment, get changed and showered _alone"_ she winked at him _"..._and you'll pick me up at Seven-thirty then?"

"Seven-Thirty. I'll see you then."

* * *

At Seven-fifteen, Brennan was stood in front of her clothes with a large pile of clothes on her bed, still in her yellow shirt and black trousers from the day before. Her nails, hair and make up were all done, but she could not find the appropriate outfit.

_What to wear... What to wear. _For a card-carrying genius, she was having a very hard time getting her head around choosing the right outfit. Getting ready for a date had never been so loaded, but then Brennan had never before been preparing for a date whilst being in love.

_If I was Booth, what would I like me to wear? Listen to yourself Temperance Brennan, when have you ever wanted to get dressed up for a man?_ Brennan chuckled to herself. How times had changed. This was Booth. Her heart skipped as soon as he popped back into her head again. Then she spotted the black dress hanging in the closet and the broadest smile appeared on her face.

Her Roxy dress...

_The hot one who makes all the boys go crazy..._

* * *

Brennan could hear Booth before she could see him. His whistling down the hallway stopped as he reached her door and he had barely finished knocking when the door swung open. The sight took him back five years and his jaw dropped. Black stilettos, legs that seemed to go on forever, that dress - boy did he love that dress - spaghetti straps that left her shoulders almost entirely bare. He could kiss those shoulders now. He would definitely do that later. Her hair was curled, just as it had been that day in Vegas and she was wearing slightly heavier make than normal.

But it wasn't Roxy, it was Brennan. He got Brennan now. They didn't have to hide behind Roxy and Tony, or Buck and Wanda just to have an excuse to flirt or touch each other anymore.

"You look beautiful, Bones." He took her hand and kissed it.

"Thank you, Booth. You look very handsome." And he did. No suit tonight, but a shirt and smart trousers, Italian shoes and a blazer. "So where are we going?"

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**Who fancies Brennan and Booth on a hot date then? I'm not sure I can keep up with this pace of posting, but I'll do my best to get another chapter up by the weekend. Thanks in advance for any further reviews.**


	4. Chapter 4

**I have been totally blown away by these reviews, faves and follows. Thank you so much.**

**I am treading a line between "Fox" and "HBO" in terms of maturity ratings, this chapter especially. we have to remember that Booth is the nicest gentleman a girl could wish for but a man none the less, with male responses to certain stimuli. I have the scenarios and dialogue playing in my head as I write but in describing I have to be a little more graphic than the visuals you get with the on-screen show to convey the characters' actions. I want to keep it just on the Fox side so PLEASE let me know if you think I've strayed too far into M territory.**

**Talking of M rated, a shout out this chapter to embarrass the lovely Threesquares, who wrote a story based on the same episode a few months ago but with a slightly raunchier outcome, *ahem*. It's called "Possession", so if you're over 18 go check it and her other stories out (especially the current "The Role of the Peloponnesian War in Modern Dating", which having studied Ancient History at A Level I find particularly pleasing.) She's a great writer and she's been very encouraging to me. :)**

**The other thing I want to share was a bit of writer's process - I've been thinking a lot about Booth and Brennan and their motivations and reactions. A lot has been discussed about how much sex Booth and Brennan have in FF stories (oversexed rabbits was a good description I once saw, lol) but for the case of this specific period in formal canon there are two people who have had massive sexual attraction from day one and very strong feelings for each other for at least five years. Thinking about the majority of RL couples I know (and the old "pennies in a jar" adage) I genuinely believe that the dam having finally broken they would be at it as much as realistically possible, and thinking about the other person most of the rest of the time, certainly for the first 2-3 months. I also think that Brennan, being Brennan, would probably keep a count of everything, certainly to start with. Just my take on it, I'd be very interested to see what others thought.**

**Oooh and I've not yet put in a disclaimer so here's one: I don't own Bones. Just borrowing it, not for profit.**

**Now where were we...?**

* * *

Booth had not elaborated on their ultimate destination, but after filling the car with gas, to Brennan's surprise, Booth drove them not further into the city, but out towards Virginia. He kept glancing over at her. Brennan had slipped her coat on as they'd left, to ward off the worst of the DC spring night air but he could still see the fullness of her breasts spilling over the top of dress as the coat was left unbuttoned once they were in the car. He eyed the valley between them they dipped into the material and subconsciously licked his lips. They way he was feeling, he could have pulled over at any point and taken her then and there, bundling her into the back of the car and ravishing her, but it wasn't his usual style and besides, the sooner they arrived, the sooner they could enjoy the surroundings and he could take his time with her - after this afternoon, he wanted to do a lot more of **that**, a slow, sexy mapping of her body, working out the best ways to make her moan his name. But most of all, he just wanted to hold her hands, get lost in her eyes and stay in that magical world without interruption. Which, he couldn't do unless they reached their destination. So he kept driving, knowing his goal was only another forty minutes or so away.

"Are we there yet?" Brennan couldn't help but ask. She was exceedingly curious as to their destination.

"You sound like Parker," he chuckled, "you're in fifth grade now?"

"No" she pouted slightly. That made Booth chuckle some more.

"You're sure about that?" He teased.

"Yes." She pouted again, more this time.

He grinned. "You are so cute when you do that. I wonder what else I can do to make you pout?"

Brennan huffed and Booth's grin spread even bigger.

"I am just curious, Booth"

"Like Curious George?"

"We'll that would make **you** the Man with the yellow hat and **he** is a metaphor for a banana."

"He **what**? How do you even know this stuff? Do you want to eat me?" _Oh God, that didn't come out right._ This conversation was taking a turn that made him involuntarily glance back at her breasts again.

"Not yet" she smirked. "Although does the restaurant serve pudding? I think I'd like something with **banana**, even if it's not on the official menu." His trousers suddenly got uncomfortably tighter. He was totally going to have to change the subject.

"Would it help if I said that we have nine-thirty dinner reservations and I took the liberty of asking Angela to pack you an overnight bag?"

"You already had this planned?" Brennan was perturbed. Happy though she was to be taking her relationship with Booth to the next level, this was still pitching her way out of her comfort zone. She fiddled with an earring nervously. She had expected a weekend mostly with Booth, looking into those big brown eyes, having plenty of intercourse (no problem with that after over two years of abstinence) and maybe catch up on some journals back at her apartment whilst Booth did something "Boothy", like watch sports. Then maybe they could have intercourse again. Actually _that_ had sounded like a perfect weekend.

"Only since this morning. While you were asleep in my bed..." He paused as he thought of her curled up under the comforter looking young and serene, the worry lines on her face from the last few days disappearing again. _That sounds so nice when I say that._ "...I know it's soon, but I thought that maybe a break away from everything would do us both some good. Just a couple of nights, you and me, no dead people, no one we actually know. No Scooby-Doo-style mysteries to flummox the brain. A Michelin-starred restaurant, a spa..."

"- It has a spa?" _That sounds... nice._

"...Running trails..."

"...Running trails?..." Suddenly this didn't sound quite such a stressful situation.

"...A room with a huge bed and a 'do not disturb' sign on the door..." _Oh yeah... _Booth glanced over at her breasts again for a moment, his libido temporarily getting the better of him. _Focus, focus _"...And a view - ah, wait until you see the view, Bones..."

* * *

Thirty-two miles later the car pulled into the driveway of boutique hotel in the middle of Shenandoah National Park. He pulled up in a marked bay and put the car into 'park'.

"Booth, this place is beautiful. Can you even afford this?"

"Well, Parker's college fund has taken a bit of a dent but it's worth it."

"Booth! You can't use Parker's college fund to take me away!"

"Bones, I'm wounded!" Booth gave a mock stabbing motion into his chest. "Of course I didn't! As a senior agent I do get a reasonable salary from the FBI."

"If you're sure, because I can contribute."

"I'm sure..." Booth rolled his eyes.

* * *

Twenty minutes later, the bags had been taken to the room by the bell-hop and the partners were sitting at a table set with linen tablecloths, crystal glasses and silver cutlery. To their left, a huge picture window looked out on a swathe of pitch black in the distance but beautifully manicured gardens lit with solar lamps shone directly below them. The waiter had just taken their order and the wine was on its way to the table.

"I wish I could see the view."

"Looks pretty good from here." Booth gazed across at her, his eyes twinkling in the soft lighting. He eyed her up and down, unable to hide some desire in his features. He was looking forward to a scrumptious dinner but part of him wanted to skip straight to dessert.

"I meant the view outside, Booth." She mock scolded him before breaking into a smile.

"You will see it in the morning, Bones, we have the same view from our room." He took her hands in his. "In the meantime I'm quite happy with the view right here, right now." His gaze settled back to where her eyes met his and for what seemed like an eternity the rest of the world just disappeared and only Booth and Brennan were left. A discrete clearing of the throat from the sommelier and the sound of red wine pouring brought them back to reality.

Over the following minutes they chatted, teased and occasionally bickered as the starters came and went, more wine was drunk and their entrees appeared in front of them.

"Bones, I'm sorry, I don't want you to feel rushed into anything. Only, I figured no distractions and a chance to get a change of scenery would just give us a chance to put some distance between us and everything that's happened in the last few days. Nothing to have figure out except when to go for a run, or eat a meal. When we get back to DC we can figure out all the practical stuff, like how we do _us_."

"So there's an us now?" Brennan rolled the word 'us' around her mouth like she was testing it. "Us."

Booth suddenly panicked. Maybe it had been too early for this conversation after all. His heart beat a little faster. _Keep a calm face_.

"I hope so because I kinda thought that after everything we've said and done in the last couple of days, there would be an "us". He looked hopefully at Brennan and searched her face for some sort of indication. It seemed to be forever before finally, Brennan leaned in towards him, brushing his finger with hers and looked down at their hands as she intertwined them again as she spoke.

"I think we need to sort out some ground rules, but yes, I am confident we can be an 'us'. I believe that I am ready to enter a monogamous relationship with you. What happened on Wednesday morning confirmed that. I can't close myself off any more Booth, especially not from you." She paused. "I feel strong. You're not angry anymore?"

"No." he smiled, relieved. She looked up at him earnestly.

"I trust you and..." She took a deep breath and for the first time in almost twenty years, Temperance Brennan said three words she'd almost entirely lost from her vocabulary.

"**I love you**."

* * *

They had eaten their entrees perhaps a little too quickly and Booth had arranged for the meal to go on their room bill almost the moment they'd swallowed their last mouthful of food. Unsurprisingly they had declined dessert. The walk up to their room was thankfully swift.

"We probably didn't need to rush, Booth."

"Oh I think we did. You just told me you love me." Booth squeezed her hand. Brennan blushed.

They reached their door to their room, Booth opened the door, guided her in and stuck the key card in the electronic unit before turning her into his arms. For the short moment Brennan had any interest at all in room, she clocked that it was a nice room, there was four poster bed and a door to something that she supposed was an ensuite, but that moment was brief as she and Booth were quickly tangled up in each others arms. He slid one hand around the back of her neck and the other round her waist. Brennan slid her hands up to his shoulders. He leaned down into her and they kissed, his fingers soon moving from her neck to tangling in her hair and she reached round to stroke the nape of his neck. He pulled back from her just enough to give himself room to whisper in her ear.

"If you don't mind, I've been dreaming about getting you out of this dress for five years."

Brennan chuckled. "You weren't the only one."

"Really?"

"No. I was very attracted to Tony in Vegas. If you had made an advance at me I would probably have responded."

"Really?" he raised an eyebrow coolly. "Right."

He let go of Brennan just long enough to walked around behind her where he pressed up against her. Booth slid his fingers over her shoulders, marvelling at the soft skin he found. He lifted her hair away from the back of her neck, dropped his head and began kissing that spot. He ran his hands lightly back along her shoulders and down her arms, giving her goosebumps, then slid his hands back up again. His kisses started to move away from her neck and along her shoulder.

"Those straps have got to go." he mumbled. He gently pulled the strap away from her shoulder on one side so it hung loose, kissed the skin underneath and then did the same on the other side. She whimpered. Her arms and shoulders were now bare and Booth gulped as he took half a step back and began to slowly unzip the back of the same dress he had zipped up five years before...

* * *

**Any further and we'd be 'M' rated! ;)**

**Positive and constructive reviews are welcomed, thank you.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hello! Thank you once again for so many reviews, faves and follows. I am trying to respond to anyone logged in who submitted a review, the rest - thank you. Turns out I quite rather like reviews so please, if you like it, please let me know (And if you didn't, how could I make it better?)**

**A public service announcement: I haven't been dawdling for the last few days. As well as this chapter, for those of you who like that sort of thing but may not be aware, there is a (fairly soft) M over in that section for what I've called "chapter 4a" involving what happened next with Booth and Brennan's zipper. ;) It needs a bit of tidy up but I know there were people waiting for the next main instalment so I thought I should get that up first.**

**For everyone else - on with the story...**

* * *

By the time Booth woke, the dawn had broken. Brennan was already up, wrapped in a hotel dressing gown and staring out of the window, her mind miles away. Spread out in front of her were the Blue Ridge mountains. She only became aware of Booth when he snuck up behind her, wrapping his arms around her and resting his head on her shoulder.

"Good Morning."

"Good Morning." She could feel her face muscles turn upwards with no discernible input from her brain. However much she fought for her independence, Brennan couldn't help but find herself falling into a lake of contentment with their new-found intimacy. That feeling was becoming a class-A drug.

"You were right Booth, the view is quite beautiful." She continued to stare out of the window although she was enjoying his arms around her.

"Yeah. Pops took us here for a couple of holidays when I was a kid... You were up a long time? You're not tired from last night? Long drive, late meal, late **bedtime**." He chuckled.

Bedtime. She glanced over at her Roxy dress, still pooled on the floor, Booth's shirt and trousers not far away. _Four_...and later _five_ as she then remembered. Four had been the first of her fantasies from a long list marked 'Booth' fulfilled and the most intense sexual experience of her life, not least of which because aside from the physical pleasure that continued on from their encounters thus far, it had turned into some sort of confessional between them whilst they made love. It had bothered her slightly that she couldn't tell if Booth had actually resolved his internal issues of guilt around that night outside of the Hoover Building:

"_You never actually told me you loved me. I wasn't strong enough then to just accept what you said without some sort of qualification."_

"_But I can't believe that I didn't say it. I thought I'd said it_."

He'd gone on to beg forgiveness, which she'd readily given, not entirely sure why he was apologising in any case. Her head had felt like it would almost explode as they reached their climax - the intensity of their conversation, just how many missed opportunities they had to make up for, her realising their unconditional love for each other and what that really meant. These all pushed her into an alien zone. But afterwards, as they lay recovering, breaths still short from their exertion, she realised she wasn't scared that he'd lain his heart open to her. She liked being there for him. There's nothing I wouldn't do for him she'd once told Gordon Gordon. She also realised that she'd left her heart open for him during their exchange and he'd done what he'd always done - nurtured it, loved it. Made it grow like an baby mammal or a delicate flower. Because he knew her heart was metaphorically fragile, but he was going to continue to help make it stronger.

That had exhausted them both physically and emotionally for several hours until around a quarter to five in the morning (what was it with that time?) when she'd woken with a start from a very lucid dream where she'd realised she never gotten round to getting her banana pudding, so she woke him up too to put that right. _Best wake up call ever_ he'd said afterwards, although it had left him a little drowsy. Number five. She'd let him sleep.

"So you wanna go for a run this morning? Check out those trails?"

"Do I have running shoes?"

"Yes, Angela packed you some, a t-shirt and those cute little shorts you wear."

"Cute?"

"Yeah, those blue ones that go all tight against your ass when you run."

"Is that why you keep dropping behind me?" She asked, suspiciously. He pulled his best innocent altar boy look.

"You're just quicker than me."

* * *

The next twenty-four hours were spent exercising, relaxing, bickering, loving and generally forgetting about the rest of the world for a little while. Brennan couldn't stop herself counting each time they became intimate. It was all still so new, so wonderful, that she wanted to catalogue it. Number six nearly happened out on the trail when Booth seemed to be once more spending a lot of time running slightly behind Brennan. When she challenged him on it again, he dragged her off the track into a secluded spot where they made out passionately for several minutes and Booth's hands worked their way inside the blue shorts (that was on _his_ list) but when Brennan pointed out the practicalities of sex up against the tree he had deemed the nearest appropriate spot:-

_Ants, termites, spiders, potential poisoning from whatever that plant was growing round the trunk (she could send a photo to Hodgins to check), scratching from the bark_... Booth decided that maybe they should wait until they were back at hotel for now, but he did proclaim that one day soon he would make love to her somewhere outdoors. Number six actually happened pretty much as they arrived back at the hotel room, five miles and forty minutes later. Brennan jumped him as soon as he took off his shoes and knocked him back on to the bed. She divested him of his T-shirt in seconds, had her own sports top off seconds later and then proceeded to ravish him. When they were done, whilst she was still sitting on top of him, hair band still holding her pony tail in place, he grinned at her, but half questioningly; to which she shrugged her shoulders and simply responded:

"_After sports..."_

...before causally climbing off him and sauntering off to the bathroom for a shower. Seven followed soon after as he was completely incapable of not following her into the shower and they both seemed to have a weakness for watching rivulets of water cascading down the other's naked bodies. He also seemed to have a remarkably short refractory period but hey, sometimes love can do that to a guy. Maybe it was a throwback to the first time they'd kissed in the rain, but the the two of them and water just seemed to be one of their 'things'. Booth was determined to get them outside in the first heavy rain he could find just to see what would happen. He almost daren't think about the outcome of putting them alone together in a hot tub or a swimming pool. Maybe even some more poor quality plumbing the could "fix". They might just spontaneously combust. It would be fun though...

They ate well in the restaurant at lunch and retired for an afternoon in their room relaxing in front of the TV. Booth watched a football game and Brennan, by now bored of the magazine she'd picked up in the foyer, skim reading it in a couple of minutes, gave a running commentary for a while which Booth couldn't work out if he was more amused or annoyed by. By the second quarter she had fallen asleep on the bed next to him whilst he complained at the television. He looked over at his sleeping beauty gently snoring next to him, studying her for a moment. She looked peaceful. She looked happy.

_I've done that_... he thought proudly.

He found himself more interested in her than the game and watched her a little longer. He'd never really had much of a chance to study her like this other than when they'd gone undercover and he'd snuck a look at her for a few minutes in the dimness of a hotel room in Vegas, when technically he'd still been "dating" Cam (more like friends with benefits); and he'd felt guilty enough even sneaking a glance in the first place. Then there was the trailer with the tiniest bed, where they'd made an agreement when they'd first arrived that if they ended up cuddling because the bed was so small, it wouldn't mean anything. Just "extended guy hugs" he'd said, and she'd readily agreed. Brennan pointed out that it was natural for many mammals to gravitate to each other for warmth so humans were programmed by evolution; and anthropologically speaking it fitted to one of Max Neef's ontological human needs in his model of Human Scale Development. By then Booth had switched off and just asked her which side she wanted. In the event, they'd clung on to their own sides of the bed for dear life for those two nights, guessing that if they had have woken up together it would have been **nothing** like a guy hug.

But there she was now, mouth just slightly open and little sounds escaping out from time to time. Was she dreaming? Did she dream of them in the future, of a life shared? He did, more often than would have have admitted before, even a couple of times when he was with Hannah. _Before Broadsky_. They would forever be defined by before and after. Seven years of before and he hoped, thirty, forty or fifty years of happily ever-after. For now though, they hadn't had that discussion and he knew they would have to speak about it at some point before they went back to work on Monday.

Brennan shifted slightly and sought out Booth's form to snuggle against. He pulled her in close and stroked her hair. Soon enough he too was asleep whilst the game continued and the lovers enjoyed a post-prandial nap.

* * *

After they had woken, it was by now late in the afternoon with the light fading. They'd dressed for dinner. Brennan decided that dressing Booth was nearly as much fun as undressing him, which nearly made them late for their reservation at a restaurant a few miles away. They flirted across the table, Booth unable to take his eyes off her And she, him. Plenty of banter and innuendo sprinkled the conversation before the food came, then they stopped talking and started eating, but maintaining far too much eye contact than was necessary and smiling at each other a lot.

"Is it always going to be like this?" Asked Brennan as she fell deep into his eyes again.

"No. We'll probably stop having sex three times a day after the first year. Probably only twice a day." he laughed.

Her face switched to impassive. "I'm serious, Booth."

"So am I, Bones." When he saw she wasn't convinced, his mouth pulled into a frown, he put own his fork and reached for her hand. "Look... We'll probably settle down into something resembling 'normal' in a few weeks, we'll have work and regular stuff; but being in love, Bones, that is something to be nurtured and enjoyed. Between the right people? That can last forever... The feeling of loss you get when I leave the room...?"

"Hey, you keep following me..."

"Yeah, 'cause I feel it too. Like a part of you is missing?"

"I admit that I miss you when we are apart. Even though it's been no time at all in the last few days. I find my feelings on the subject have intensified since we started having inter- _making love_."

He smiled at her again. "Boundaries have gone, like I said yesterday. We don't have to hide our true emotions from each other any more."

"Yes, but I find that I am concerned at the intensity of the emotions I am feeling. How am I going to function when we return to our regular schedules at work?"

"Remember, we've been through a trauma. That makes things intensify for a while; and we're not an average couple". He beamed at her. "Seven years of unfulfilled desire is gonna cause a emotional earthquake! When we get back to DC, you'll find pretty quickly that you'll get back to the swing of things because you have a room full of bones, we'll get a body before long because one small section of the great American public can't stop killing the rest and life will mostly return to normal. But we - Booth and Bones won't. This is us 'two-point-oh'. This is good."

"Do you think work's going to be OK?"

"Number one - highest solve rate in the history of homicide at the Bureau. Number two - They all think we've been sleeping together for a while anyway." He paused and then gave a resigned smile. "There's a pool."

"A gambling pool?" Her eyes widened. He nodded.

"I believe Angela has been using her inside knowledge to clean up." He grinned. Look, we'll still work together, we'll see each other. And the best part? I come home to you and you come home to me. We'll figure out the rest."

* * *

Number eight. An innocent conversation about her last book when they were getting ready for bed turned into something quite different. Page one-eighty-seven. It turned out Brennan was quite, quite flexible and Booth nearly pulled his back again in ensuring the success of their endeavour.

"_Totally worth it_" he gasped as they ended up a heap on the bed, sweaty and spent. They lay unchanged for several minutes.

"You are very strong, Booth," Brennan gushed. She was getting rather fond of his biceps. It often seemed to be the first place she would grab when they kissed. "Hodgins must also have quite considerable upper body strength as Angela informed me of the manoeuvre."

"...And I did not need to know that..." Booth tried to shake that image from his mind.

"Booth?" Brennan cocked her head at him.

"What?"

"Would you like to try page three-forty-two?" Her voice dropped an octave. "That one's all from my imagination."

_Nine_.

* * *

By the 11.30 next morning they were checked out of the hotel and taking a leisurely drive back to DC. It was Saturday and the traffic lighter then usual.

"So what are we doing?"

"What would you like to do?"

"Can we go back to my apartment? I feel like I've hardly been there in days."

"Well, you haven't really."

"Do you have anything you need to do?"

"Not really, maybe I should go back to my place tomorrow but if you're OK with it we can hang at your place, maybe we can christen your apartment?" He looked over and winked at her.

"Booth, you know I'm an atheist. Why would I want to christen my apartment? There is no rational reason to give it a name."

"It's a euphemism, Bones. It means to make love in various rooms."

"Ohhhh. But I've already had intercourse in my apartment." He looked a little crestfallen. She saw his sad face and recovered quickly.

"-but I haven't made love in my apartment, Booth." His features brightened.

_Ten_. And _Eleven_... And _Twelve_ (but not all at once. It took about a day.)

* * *

Sunday night. Brennan looked at her laptop screen as she began the next chapter of her novel. Booth had gone back to his apartment for the night to prepare for work the next day. He'd called her twice to tell he loved her and she'd texted him three times to tell him that she missed him and to ask him insignificant things just to keep the contact going. She looked at the screen, and then around the room.

Everything is fine, really fine. Good in fact. No, better than good. Brilliant.

She was the happiest she could ever remember being. Only something niggled her and Brennan couldn't put her finger on it. Then she remembered. The day Vincent had been shot. She had put her birth control pills in her overnight bag for her stay at Booth's. She'd just forgotten to take them for a couple of days in the mix of the anguish and elation that followed. She'd been on them for so long, even without any action for two years, it would be extremely unlikely that anything could happen by just missing a couple of them. She put the thought out of her mind...

* * *

**Apparently my muse really digs positive and constructive reviews, so they are gratefully received, thank you. :)**


	6. Chapter 6

**Someone mention some B'n'B lovin' in the lab? ;)**

* * *

"So, Sweetie..." Angela sauntered into Brennan's office without so much as a knock, as easily as it was possible to saunter with almost nine months of baby attached. "How was the weekend?" Her voice inflected with expectation.

"Ang..." Brennan's face was quite unreadable. She seemed very distracted and barely looked up at her friend from her computer screen.

"Brennan? Are you mad at me for sneaking over to your place on Booth's behalf? Because I did it for you, Honey. I thought you'd be..." Then Angela caught sight of Brennan's screen.

"- Brennan, are you writing Booth a LOVE LETTER? Oh My God, that is so cute!"

Brennan immediately hit the minimise button on her email app and looked up, looking quite flustered. Angela grinned. "Well, at least I got your attention now, lady."

"He emailed me first. I was just responding." Brennan responded a little too quickly and slightly irritably. Her voice lowered: "How much of that did you see?"

"Just enough to know you two are like a couple of loved-up teenagers." Angela couldn't keep the grin on her face from getting even larger, if that was possible. "Come on Brennan, dish it." Brennan tried to look stern but failed miserably. This was her best friend who she knew would be overjoyed at their coming together.

"Thank you for my bag, Ang." Her features softened and she couldn't help but break into the same smile she'd given Angela days before in the examination room. "As you know, he took me away for two nights. We went to a hotel in the Shenandoah National Park. It was very -" she paused and considered for a moment... "- romantic."

Angela's jaw dropped open. Brennan using the word _romantic_? "Romantic?! What exactly did you do?"

"We made love six times at the hotel and then three more when we got back to Washington. We christened my apartment." she said proudly. Her voice lowered again. "We did page one-eighty seven. And three-forty-two." She was positively brimming.

Angela's face was a picture. Reports from the last week had fulfilled almost every shipper fantasy she'd had about Booth and Brennan in the seven years she'd watched them dance around each other. The only two items missing from Angela's wish list were a gold band on Brennan's ring finger and the sight of several little Brennan-Booths running around, all probably with PhDs by the time they were in pre-school. _Just a matter of time_... she thought gleefully.

"Wow. That is...way more information than I expected. I meant where did you hang out, what activities did you do? Never mind." She giggled. "So it was really hot, huh?"

"I believe Booth's words were "_Smokin' hot_." Brennan broke into something that actually resembled a smirk.

"And now?" Brennan shrugged her shoulders.

"We love each other and we are very sexually compatible. We talked about it and we are going to try to be together. My only problem, and I do not foresee any immediate solution to this, is that I can do nothing about the level of distraction I am feeling with regards to my emotions towards him." She looked both exasperated and delighted at the same time. Angela leaned forward and squeezed her shoulder.

"Welcome to requited love in glorious Technicolor, Honey. It'll settle down over time. You just have to work a little harder to compartmentalise in the meantime, and hey, you're good at that."

"Ang, I can't stop thinking about him." Brennan looked positively wistful.

"You know what, you've earned the right to enjoy that feeling. Don't fight it too much. I'd even say, make it work _for_ you." She winked, three-pointed-turned and waddled out.

* * *

Early evening, Booth was in his office, filling out the last of the paperwork to wrap up the Broadsky case. He had just about managed to keep his focus on work most of the day although his mind kept drifting to his girlfriend - girlfriend... he thought, a dopey smile forming his face. Several unnecessarily soppy emails had gone back and forth between them during the course of the day. No emails for the last hour or so though so he'd figured she'd been doing something productive at work. Then his phone flashed a text.

**Can you come to my office?** _Bones_. He smiled, then worried that something was wrong.

**- Everything OK? **He texted back.

**Everything's fine**. **Please bring your paperwork.**

**- Aw, miss me, Bones?**

**I find I am distracted and miss your company.**

**- Can you come here?**

**Not really**. He raised an eyebrow. _What's going on here?_

**- OK, I'll be over in half an hour.**

**Make it 20 minutes.**

Booth stuffed his paperwork into a briefcase, grabbed his wallet and almost ran out the door.

* * *

When Booth arrived, the lab was starting to clear out for the evening. He nodded to a number of staff on their way out, who were used to seeing him coming and going. Brennan was in her office, window blinds drawn shut, but the door left open. she was working at her desk, wearing her blue lab coat. she seemed utterly engrossed in what she was doing. He stood and enjoyed watching her from the door for a moment before clearing his throat.

"Hi Bones."

"Hi Booth." They smiled at each other. He went over to kiss her and noticed that he couldn't see a collar under her lab coat as he bent over to kiss her temple.

"Take a seat Booth, would you like to finish your paperwork? I though we could stay here for a while before we go home tonight." Booth did wonder why she'd asked him to rush over, but Bones being Bones, it was probably just some quirky thing she had going. He wandered over to the couch.

They sat for about an hour, both working, occasionally commenting to each other about something from the day. Brennan had been right, it was nice to just be in each other's company, although from the sounds of it, it had been fairly quiet all day. The lab had been cleaned up over the weekend and the was no evidence of any remnants of the horrific incident the week before. Brennan had come back to start work on some remains in limbo Whilst they waited for their next case.

By about seven-thirty the lab was just about empty. She got up from her chair for the first time since he'd arrived and went over to the door to check the state of the lab outside. He glanced up from his papers briefly to see her looking around the main lab area, hawk-eyed. Within a few moments she seemed satisfied with whatever she was looking out for, and came back. Booth heard the door close and the next thing he knew he was starting at a pair of strappy four-inch heels about two feet away, attached to smooth shapely legs which disappeared under Brennan's lab coat. She must be wearing a very short skirt today as he couldn't see the usual hint of material out from underneath.

Booth stood up. As his eyes scanned her upwards, he couldn't help but notice her lab coat now had the top couple of buttons open and all he could see was cleavage and creamy skin. He gulped as realisation hit. _Ohhhh_.

"Are you actually wearing anything under your lab coat?" he said, trying to remain cool and calm.

"Yes." Brennan siddled right up to him so they were almost pressed against each other. "Would you like to see for yourself?" she asked as innocently as she could for a woman who had clearly had the seduction planned. She stood still and tried to control her breathing as he slowly undid the buttons on the coat. It became apparent that she was wearing something underneath. Very sexy underwear, clearly chosen especially for the occasion. Brennan looked up at Booth with a sultry smile. Booth realised what she had planned and grinned back.

* * *

Half an hour or so later and a near-exhausted Booth and Brennan were dressing, the remainder of her clothes stashed behind her desk.

"Woah. That was...quite, um, unexpected."

"This was on my list. I thought that the sooner I could mark this off my list the sooner I can work without being so distracted."

"Are you just using me for sex, Doctor Brennan?" he laughed.

"Not at all Special Agent Booth. I merely realised that having you in my office would help my concentration... You see what I did there? I used the word 'having' in both the literal and euphemistic sense. I am quite amusing."

"Yes you are, Bones", he helped her on with her shirt, taking the opportunity to kiss her gently on the neck.

"Mmmmm. That's nice."

"Bones, you do realise though that every time you look at this couch from now on, all you are going to be able to think about is you riding me like a sexually deranged cowgirl, right? Because I have to tell you, I am never looking at this couch in the same way again." Brennan's face briefly dropped at the realisation and then she recomposed herself.

"That may be so but at least I can use the memory appropriately. I might put it in my next novel."

"You're quite determined, aren't you!"

"Yes" she said, leaning into him as she finished buttoning up her shirt and couldn't resist kissing him again. "Quite determined."

"So any more lab-based fantasies I should know about?"

"Oh, I have a whole sub-section for that... And another for your office..."

"Oh God..." He wasn't sure whether to pray for thanks or forgiveness.

* * *

**Happy Easter. I'll take reviews in lieu of eggs... ;)**


	7. Chapter 7

**Hello again! I hope everyone had a nice Easter (and Pesach, also last week of course - we did that in a very random way this year.) I got over 2,400 story hits after I posted the last chapter. And about 10 reviews. Which is awesome, but please, if you're enjoying the story, let me know. This is the first story I've written that has given me a proper appreciation of how amazing it is when people post reviews. It really does fuel the muse.**

**This chapter is not angsty, but it is a bit more intense. Like having 70% chocolate instead of 32%. Also, I'm trying to think back nearly six years to when I was last pregnant, hazier than I thought... ;)**

**Disclaimer - this chapter especially, I do not own Bones. Sadly.**

* * *

The days turned into weeks and Booth and Brennan settled down into their new relationship. There was already so much they knew about each other but then, all the little things they didn't. The subtle changes in their behaviours, they were they apparent too.

Brands of toothpaste preferred, hair products (although they already knew each other's favourite scent of shampoo from all those guy hugs), how Booth laid his clothes out for the next day, how long Brennan timed her boiled eggs for, and the shock that, at home, when no one could see her, she had _soldiers_ with them. Booth decided it was clearly because of _him_. Leaning across the table, he pointed at the buttery toast, cut neatly into strips.

"Is that soldier called Booth?"

"No."

"That one?"

"No."

"That one?"

"Nope..."

* * *

The biggest surprise Booth had about Brennan was how affectionate she was. Now she'd allowed herself to truly open her heart to him, Booth was amazed at how much she liked to cuddle. She would snuggle into him when they watched a movie, when he woke in the morning she would often be curled around him like a vine. He'd taught her about laying in bed on a Sunday morning with the weekend edition of the Washington Post, her head on his shoulder and his arm wrapped around her, holding the paper out in front of them to read together. They would debate and discuss, often bickering, always laughing. Then he would look across at her and catch her eye; and the world would stop for a little while. Sometimes they would decide it was time for breakfast and take a long hot shower together, until the water would begin to run cooler and they would have a frantic last second dash to rinse the last of the soap off before the water turned completely cold. Other times he would grab her and tickle her, eventually wasting another couple of hours as they always ended up making love and dozing until it was lunchtime. Brennan, in particular, hated the idea of wasting the whole day doing entirely nothing, so she would make them get up, go for a run, or wander down to a cafe. Either way the newspaper would end up a muddled mess of pages on the floor. Brennan would tut to herself as she picked up the papers and put them in the recycling, but equally she had the broadest of smiles on her face as she did. The paper review became her second-favourite regular activity of the week.

Brennan taught Booth about Jill Scott and Gil Scott Heron, whom Angela had introduced to her years before:

"_...although they are not related, their music fills many of the same genres, Booth. The music is very rhythmic and the verses very powerful. I find it quite sensual..._"

- and how nice it was to make out on the couch in her apartment whilst the music and tone poems whispered sweet, sexy nothings in the background.

On the weekends Booth had Parker they would change their schedule but Booth was relived to see that it was never a burden for Brennan to have Parker around. They had discussed it, very briefly...

"_He's an extension of you Booth. I love him just as I love you. Well, obviously not exactly as I love you as that would be inapp-_" at which point he'd cut her off with a searing kiss. Her eyes closed and her heart skipped a beat. He was very, very pleased with her.

As it had turned out, Parker had taken their change in relationship pretty well, seeing as he'd been angling for it for quite some time, and not just because of the whole pool thing. He'd known Bones had loved his dad for quite some time. To Parker, that was what mattered most. Bones loved his dad like he knew someone should love his dad. Besides, she was cool and treated him like a fifth-grader closer to high-school, rather than like a little kid still in kindergarten. Although now they were finally together, Parker wondered if he should start calling her Temperance rather than Bones, especially seeing as it seemed a more grown-up thing to do.

For Brennan, the biggest revelation she'd had about Booth now they were together was now she got to see it up close, just how beaten up Booth's body was, and yet, how strong and stoic he remained. It pained her to see him struggle on a daily basis. Brennan had taken it upon herself to be Booth's one-woman massage and physiotherapy clinic from even before they were together. Now they were an item, much to Booth's pleasure, her goal to completely ease his ongoing aches and pains had become even more of a passion for her. Unfortunately this usually back-fired as she also had an insatiable passion for him and more often than not, an innocent physio session on a mat on the floor would descend into something quite different as she ran her fingers over his muscles just a little too sensually than with the vigour he expected. His eyes would flick open at the intimacy of her touch and there she was, hovering over him, licking her lips as her hair fell half over her face. He couldn't help but start to react in all sorts of ways to her behaviour and inevitably they would end up wrestling on the mat until what remained of her clothes were strewn on the floor, he would be running his tongue into all sorts of interesting crevices, she grabbing hold of whichever of his body parts was nearest and they would be well on their way to aggravating his long term injuries further. But he couldn't help it, and neither could she. All that pent up sexual tension had been released like a coiled spring, turning hugely potential, into very kinetic, energy.

So there they were, acting like the species depended on them to procreate, and totally in love. They had decided to keep things between them for the moment and enjoy what they had before everything would go horribly public. There would be questions from within the team, Brennan's publicist would have a field day with her best-selling author finally all-but-admitting that Booth _was_ really Andy Lister, emphasised further by the fact that after several book dedications she was now nailing him regularly and as good as cohabiting with him. Angela of course, knew everything going on and a couple of weeks in, admitted to Brennan that Hodgins knew too. To be fair, Jack was pretty discrete in open company, although he couldn't get the grin off his face when he saw them together for the first time - both Brennan **and** Booth were forced to give him very disapproving looks to stop him from cheering.

Brennan started to learn to compartmentalise differently in this brave new world. It was difficult at first but Booth and Angela had both been right. Limbo had enough cases to keep them busy for years and she found that once she got into her rhythm again, suddenly most of the day would have passed and she was just about back to her productive best. They still exchanged texts, still met for lunch in the diner, but she could just about cope without seeing him all day, mostly anyway. The were occasional 'nooners and clandestine kisses in closets and apartments. Then one murder victim arrived in the lab, then another, and for the partners it was time to venture back out into the field. It had been Brennan who suggested that they avoid any public displays of affection, but of the two of them, was actually she who found it harder to control herself at the crime scenes. On one occasion she'd gazed at him a just a little too lovingly for just a little too long. When Booth warned her that one more look like that and the FBI squints would start to cotton on, she got the message, although she did sulk about it for quite some time. Brennan was only placated when Booth knew absolutely no one could see them and he placed a quick peck on her lips round the back of the SUV, promising he'd make it up to her later. He did. She arrived at his apartment that night to find subdued lighting, candles, jazz standards quietly piping out of the stereo and daisies in a vase on the table, with wine glasses already filled and the table laid for two.

Brennan was still counting. Twenty, thirty, forty times they had made love. In bed, on the living room floor, kitchen counter. Shower. Bath. The more they did it, the more addicted she became to it. It felt decadent. His scent, his touch. His mouth on her. Every time was slightly different. Every time, she learned something new about Seeley Joseph Booth. If one of his sports teams had played that day their love-making would reflect the result. Winning meant elated, playful, enthusiastic Booth, eager to please her. Losing meant darker, sometimes downright angry, sex. Sometimes she liked it when his team lost; he would take his frustrations out in their intimacy; when his eyes went the darkest shade of brown she could discern and pierced into hers as he took her slightly more roughly than usual, she never felt more alive. She liked the way he smelt first thing in the morning before he showered - like sandalwood and musk and something very (for the want of a word she could never quite find) _Boothy_; his hair all mussed up and the prickles of his day-old beard gently scraping when he kissed her.

* * *

One morning, about five weeks after the first time they had slept together, they got a call about a body found inside the pin settings of a bowling lane. It turned out that the victim was a bowling buddy of Max's. Booth thought about telling him about their new status but was distracted but the idea they might go undercover, and besides, Booth knew it had to be Brennan's decision to tell her dad. Max clearly realised something was up, he kept looking at them very strangely, especially down at the bowling alley. At one point Brennan let Booth kiss her, ostensibly as part of their undercover routine, but Max had clocked something in the way they looked at each other and he wheeled away with a smirk. Nothing was said, but then Booth figured, it probably didn't need to be.

The case was moving slower than the partners would have liked. There was a horrible, obnoxious child named Amber who had driven Brennan and Booth nuts already and by the end of the first day they couldn't wait to get away from her. They excused themselves at the end of the game and went back to Brennan's apartment, carefully taking off their comedy wigs and garish clothes. It had been an exhausting day thanks to that grim child, so for once, soon after dinner and a spell in front of the TV, they settled down to sleep almost immediately.

Brennan woke up very early, feeling like something was slightly off. She slipped out of bed, glancing at Booth, who was still sleeping soundly. She padded into the bathroom and carefully shut the door. She looked in the mirror, contorting her mouth, cheeks and eyes with her hands, but couldn't see any obvious difference in her appearance. She felt a little jaded, her breasts were slightly sore and something just felt different. She reached into her wash bag for her birth control pill and it occurred to her that she'd not had a period in weeks. She'd been due on a couple of weeks before but in all the excitement of being caught up with Booth, she'd not noticed. Until now. She watched herself in the mirror. The colour drained from her face as she remembered about the two missed pills, weeks before. Then she remembered about Booth's "super sperm" he'd donated to her just before they discovered his brain tumour. _She'd had him thoroughly checked out. Those babies could swim for America._

_**Oh God. A baby.**_

* * *

**Time for a pregnancy test! - Not for me, for Brennan, I'm done with that sort of thing ;) Not done with reviews though please. They are like Booth's super sperm for my ovum of creativity...**


	8. Chapter 8

**Well, I asked for reviews and boy, did I get them! Apologies to anyone waiting for a response to review - thank you so much, all of you, and for all the follows and faves. At the moment we are on holiday in Egypt so not much time to do much FF-related other than try and get this bloody chapter completed!**

**This chapter was tricky to write and I'm still not 100% happy with the ending. My apologies if it's a bit flat.**

* * *

Brennan watched the two plastic sticks sitting on the cistern anxiously and glanced across at the stopwatch she'd set up on her phone. 1:22... 1:23... 1:24... The waiting was frustrating, even though she'd spent much of the day in a holding pattern for the right moment to even take the pregnancy test she was currently wanting to hurl out of the window, the time it was taking.

She'd bought the test earlier that morning, which had since been sitting in her bag, nagging and goading her to open it. Brennan had even lied to Booth and said that the bowling alley had given her a headache the previous day, so she would pop out to the chemist get some Tylenol on their way in, an unusual event for Brennan, who was rarely ever sick and even more rarely one to take, what was, in her mind, unnecessary medication. Booth was concerned and had offered to go for her, of course, but she'd told him not to worry. She felt bad about that, she'd rarely ever not been completely truthful with Booth, sometimes tactlessly so in fact, and would tell him later when the time was right, but in the meantime she had to know.

In the event she picked up a double pack of pregnancy tests, knowing being the scientist that she was, one test would never be enough to satisfy her empiricist nature, despite the technology now being precise enough that accuracy rates were well over 99.99 percent. She was satisfied that two sets of results would give her an accuracy of at least three-sigma and therefore be good enough before she would have visit her gynaecologist in due course for subsequent confirmation of gender and due dates.

She slipped the tests into her bag and got back in the car, knowing she would just have to sit things out a little longer until the case had reached either a natural break or perhaps, if they got some results in their favour, closure. It wasn't ideal but Brennan had to be patient. Going off in the middle of a game being a character like Wanda would arouse suspicion and more importantly, if the result was positive, she wasn't sure she could keep in character around Booth and the whole point of being undercover was that they needed to stay in character the entire time.

When they'd solved the case later that afternoon, everyone felt a bit sorry for the shoe-handler who had emerged as the murderer, especially after the godawful child Amber had set about him, too; as soon as back-up had arrived, they'd gone straight to the hospital, still in their undercover clothes (although thankfully they'd been able to ditch the fright wigs) as Hodgins had called, in a slightly frantic state, that the baby was on the way.

When they'd arrived, Brennan noticed the entire team appeared to be hanging around in the waiting room, doing very little of note. Whilst they all sat about, including Booth, Brennan slipped out to the toilet.

1:56... 1:57... 1:58... A blue crosshair was already clearly visible in the small window of one of the sticks. She studied it carefully, then checked the other. The result was the same.

_Well that's it then._

Brennan wasn't sure how she should feel. So far what was washing over her was part terror, part delight. She was pregnant from making love to the man she loved. That was awesome. Of all the people in the world to be having a baby with, she chosen Booth already anyway. But then... there was the enormity of it all. An actual baby. Talking about having a baby with him before they'd even gotten together had been one thing, but having a baby, especially as their romantic relationship was only just really starting, seemed to be cheating them of that period other people had to really get to know each other. But then Brennan pondered, perhaps that was what the last seven years had been...

* * *

When Jack bought Michael Vincent Staccato Hodgins out to meet everyone (although Brennan couldn't work out exactly why the entire team, and Sweets, were still there) she'd slipped in to see Angela. Luckily they'd kept the bunny they'd bought together in the preceding couple of weeks in the car, just in case. She'd grabbed it out of the boot as they had arrived at the hospital.

Angela was serene. Brennan walked in, just a hint of nervousness as she peered in to the room.

"How was it?"

"It was beautiful... It was a dream." Luckily Angela was still in her post-birth glow and had missed Brennan's slight trepidation which she might have otherwise picked up.

Brennan couldn't tell anyone about her change of circumstance before Booth. It wouldn't be right. So she said nothing of note. She gave Angela the bunny she and Booth had purchased for baby Michael, making sure Angela knew it was from the two of them. She thought back - they had had fun in the toy shop. Booth's face had lit up like a Christmas tree as he spotted all sorts of toys that he knew Parker would enjoy and Brennan found herself enthusiastically joining in, especially around the science section, before they eventually got to the task at hand and found an appropriate cuddly rabbit. Brennan was even satisfied that the bunny was roughly a correct colour and reasonably anatomically correct, aside from clearly lacking the appropriate reproductive organs.

_I have to get used to these toys as abstract devices for entertainment purposes_ she decided.

* * *

When she appeared back in the waiting room several minutes later, Brennan quietly held back from anything other than looking at the baby with the crazy hat, cradled in his father's arms and wondering what that scene would look like with Booth holding their baby, in what she guessed would be about eight months time. Booth looked over at Brennan. His Spidey sense picked up there was something, he knew that look; but he couldn't work out what it was.

"You wanna get a coffee, Bones? A proper one, not any of this hospital crap."

She nodded. They said their goodbyes to the assembled group, citing tiredness and a need to finish up the last of the paperwork as they'd neglected to complete it in the hurry to reach the hospital. Of course, only Jack and Angela even knew they were together at this stage and they were too busy having just had a baby, to notice.

As they walked along the street they talked about Hodgins and Angela, Brennan seemed anxious. Booth reminded her that the baby was healthy and Jack and Angela were in love and were happy. She still appeared on edge. They stopped and he looked at her quizzically.

Now or never she realised. In what felt like the longest seconds in history, she looked him straight in the eye:

"I'm... I'm pregnant." For the split second that followed, his face was blank. It wasn't be like it could be anyone else's, when would she have time for a start; let alone the fact that for the first time in her adult life she had openly told another adult she loved them romantically; and they'd been doing a lot of loving recently, but he seemed in shock. So Brennan qualified it.

"You're the father."

Booth's face changed in slow-motion from the previous look of shock into the brightest grin she'd ever seen. In relief Brennan found herself mirroring his expression. He was pleased. She was also surprised as he pulled her into him and hugged her tightly before giving her a big smack on the lips.

"I guess you'll be having de-caff." Booth chuckled.

"I guess so", she pulled back to make eye contact again. "You're happy...?" She looked at him for the answer to a question she wasn't sure she'd even asked.

"Bones, are you kidding me? After giving me your heart, you're giving me a child. Do you have any concept of how amazing that is?" He smiled at her with such warmth she thought she might just melt then and there. He squeezed her hand. "I do have one question though - um... How? Not that I mind of course."

"Well... When a man and a woman have intercourse-"

"Woah! Okay, okay, that bit I understand, Bones. I mean, how did we make..." He trailed off.

"Oh. I forgot to take my birth control pill for two days when Vincent died. That night we made love for the first time - we made a baby." Brennan looked almost embarrassed. "Apparently my eggs and your sperm are an irresistible combination." She looked almost coy.

"That'd be my super sperm. Didn't you say that-"

"Yes, despite questionable elements of your diet, your sperm are highly concentrated and very strong swimmers."

"Oh yeah..." Booth looked very cocky. Nothing like having your virility confirmed so completely. He was the man! He slipped his arm around her and they walked along for a block, both just strolling in contemplation. Then he stopped and turned to her. "Bones I am so sorry, I haven't even asked how you're doing? Are you sick? How's your head? Was that from the baby? Do you need anything?" Brennan looked him reassuringly and put her hand on his shoulder.

"I'm fine Booth. Thank you for asking. I expect that, having worked out when I believe we conceived, I will probably start to exhibit some of the more common symptoms over the next one to three weeks. In the meantime I generally feel unaffected, other than my breasts are a little tender, although I need to book an appointment with my gynaecologist as soon as possible. She paused. "I'm sorry, I didn't have a headache this morning, I went to get the pregnancy test. I didn't want to give you a false alarm." She shuffled awkwardly on the balls of her feet.

"It's OK Bones, I understand, that was very thoughtful of you. But, from now on, we do this together, OK? Appointments, tests, you name it, I wanna be there to hold your hand. I want to be a part of this."

"It's important to you. Isn't it." His mouth straightened.

"Yes it is. And so are you." He wrapped his arms around her. They were all of a couple of hundred yards further up the road than five minutes before, but time and location seemed irrelevant. He kissed her deeply.

"What do I have to do to make you understand how important you are to me, Temperance? I kinda hoped you knew by now." Brennan couldn't respond. She didn't have the words. She just cocked her head at him, studying him.

"I am going to have to take you home and _show_ you." He stroked her cheek. "I could just say 'I love you' again but that doesn't cover the half of it. Everything is changing, but changing for the better."

And that night was when Temperance Brennan stopped counting.

* * *

**So that's the end of 6x23. I thought about ending this story at this point but I think we can still have a bit more fun filling in the time between end of season 6 and the start of season 7. **

**Positive and genuinely constructive reviews are really welcomed and appreciated, thank you.**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Hello, and let me start by thanking everyone who has reviewed, faved and followed. **

**To answer findingwhimsy's point when they kindly reviewed the last chapter (thank you BTW), Booth may want to be involved but that doesn't mean Brennan's going to change her habits easily, does it? ;) I'm trying to keep them in character here!**

**This was mostly written on the flight back from Sharm-el-Sheik, which I have to say, was an excellent holiday. Then I had a total writer's block for three days. :( Only some of the brilliant BnB fan vids by Joolzac over on YouTube (check them out.) seemed to bring back the muse, whom I seemed to have left on the plane. :S Still, here now, and I am hopeful the next chapter should be a little easier to write as I have a much better idea of where it's going.**

**I still don't own any part of Bones or anything directly connected with the show.**

* * *

"Bones?" Booth called out from Brennan's bathroom. "Have you seen my toothbrush?"

"It's where you left it, Booth, I haven't touched it since last night."

Three weeks in to their revelation and the Booth-Brennan household was still adjusting to its new situation. They had agreed to share time at their apartments, Brennan's being their current location. At eight weeks the morning sickness was just starting to kick in and the first signs of Brennan's body changing were just starting to becoming apparent to her, although no one else would have noticed. They knew she had maybe six, or at a push, eight weeks before the bump would start to appear and the cat would most definitely be out of the bag. In the meantime, they wanted to try and enjoy the time they had with the minimum of intrusion. It was scant reward for the seven years of waiting they had both endured; but then, the idea of creating a new life together had not been such a hard adjustment for two people deeply in love for what had, in fact, been rather a long time with no discernible reward at all.

"No, I still can't find it."

"It's right next to mine."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. Here, I'll show you." Brennan marched into the bathroom and went straight to the two toothbrushes sitting next to each other in the shell toothbrush holder in front of Booth's nose.

"Which part of that did you not understand, Booth?" and with that she rather brusquely handed him the toothbrush before turning on her heel and leaving the bathroom, only to return again some fifteen seconds later as the morning sickness washed over her. She ran over to the toilet as Booth was still brushing his teeth and he found himself dropping his brush in the sink, mouth still partly foaming as turned to pull Brennan's hair into a ponytail whilst she wretched into the bowl.

"I'm sorry." Brennan now looked apologetic as the wave of nausea subsided.

"Don't worry. Anyway, apparently it's a very healthy sign. Here's your toothbrush." Booth handed her the implement from the holder without a hint of irony.

"Thank you." They smiled at each other before brushing their teeth, this time together. Booth, once he'd rinsed the remaining foam from his mouth, pecked her on the temple on his way out of the bathroom.

* * *

Camille Saroyan was no fool. Far from it. She had both a well-above-average IQ of her own and as a girl from first Philly and then New York, she was street-wise too. From the moment Doctor Temperance Brennan had walked through the door after the long weekend she had ordered for the team some two months previously, she knew something had changed. At first she couldn't put her finger on it. Brennan just just seemed different. On the outside she was her brilliant, sometimes brusque self, but she had an ever-so-slight air of distractedness about her that to those that didn't know her well would have missed, but to Cam, who had been in Brennan's company for five years, Brennan acted with such predictability in most of her behaviours that any change, even something almost imperceptibly small, was surprisingly easy to pick up. Then, it took one tiny action from Brennan and Booth for Cam to make a discovery which was unexpected but yet, completely confirming their universe had taken a giant step forward.

Booth had made a foray into the lab about a month earlier, around lunchtime. Cam watched her old friend as he strolled across the floor, generally being ignored by most of the staff other than the odd nod from the occasional scientist. He had paused outside of Brennan's door for about a minute, leaning on the door frame, smiling to himself about something before eventually clearing his throat. Brennan's blinds were open so Cam had a decent view of what followed.

Booth wandered over to Brennan who had looked up to face him across her desk, though still seated in her chair. He leaned over her desk and they engaged in what Angela had some come to call "eye sex", which always made Cam roll her eyes when she used the term, but she knew exactly what Ang had meant. The phasing out of the rest of the world that they seemed to do effortlessly. The look that was the two of them going up against the nearest firm surface and screwing each other's brains out without so much as a touch.

Then they had some sort of conversation ending with two sets of beaming smiles and Brennan promptly got up from her chair. Booth reached for her jacket which he slipped round her shoulders. Nothing unusual so far, only then - Booth paused for a moment as he looked out across the lab to check if anyone was looking. When he thought there were no prying eyes, he pulled the hair away from Brennan's neck to release it from her collar and _then_ placed his other arm around her waist and kissed the spot just under her ear. Brennan closed her eyes and leaned back into him for several moments as the two shared what was clearly a very intimate moment before straightening up smartly, Booth guiding her out of the lab. The whole movement took all of about twenty seconds but it was enough to tell Cam _everything_.

Cam's eyes widened almost as if she almost hadn't believed what she had seen, but as her brain processed the information, she found herself talking to no one in particular:

_Seeley, you old dog, you finally got your girl, didn't you._

For a moment Cam felt a pang of annoyance that no one had bothered to tell her yet but she realised from Booth's surreptitious look around the lab that they were keeping this quiet. Her face made a satisfied expression. All in all this was good. Very very good.

_I guess they'll tell me when they're ready. Remember to act surprised, Cam..._

* * *

Angela was not yet back from her maternity leave so Brennan was mostly alone in her office, other than the occasional appearance from Hodgins, Cam, or one of the interns, or even less frequently, Booth. Since they'd started dating he had actually backed off from visiting her at work too often. Sure enough, after their after-hours romp on her office couch, Booth could not go in there without thinking impure thoughts worthy of a trip to confessional, so he made his visits on a needs-must basis.

Luckily the morning sickness was staying true to its name and abating by early afternoon. The rest of the time Brennan was devouring ginger biscuits and several pregnancy-friendly herbal teas from first thing in the morning to stave off the worst of the nausea. She kept these stashed in her drawer. Her main concern was how she was going to get down to any cases to look at remains in the morning for at least the subsequent few weeks if not the entire pregnancy, without throwing up. Brennan's sense of smell had kicked into some sort of overdrive over the last few days and it was only adding to the criteria required to launch the desire to vomit at any given moment before the sun was over the yard arm.

As she was considering her situation and quietly cursing her hormones, Brennan hurriedly closed her desk drawer and with half a mouth still full of ginger biscuit, picked up her phone and dialled a familiar number.

Angela reached across to her phone and smiled when she saw the caller ID.

"Hi Sweetie! How are you and Agent Hot Stuff? Still breaking all the sexy records?" Angela grinned as she could hear Brennan's discomfort at the other end of the phone.

"There are no formal domestic or international records for intercourse, Angela."

"Wanna bet?" Angela chuckled. "You're reading the wrong journals! Seriously Brennan, what's up, and genuinely, how is it going?"

"I wanted to ask you a hypothetical question."

"OK. Go ahead." _Here we go._

"How long did you wait before you told Cam you were pregnant. I mean, how long would someone wait to tell their superior they were pregnant?"

"I thought you said it was hypothetical. Oh my God Brennan, are you pregnant?!"

"Um, it's for a friend."

"You have friends I don't know about? That's new."

"Yes, an old friend" there was a pause... "From college."

"Which college?"

"Undergrad"

"And she asked you this question?" Angela was sounding way more cynical than Brennan had hoped.

"We'll I said I knew you... As someone who had been recently been pregnant."

"Really." Angela raised an eyebrow.

"So can you answer the question?"

"Yes. What's your friend's name?" Brennan looked around frantically. She'd run the conversation through her head so Angela would would be none the wiser for the moment, but this was not going the way she'd planned.

Bunch of daisies in a vase on the desk - from Booth (_of course_) - she felt herself smile just a little.

"Daisy." _Oh God that was a bad move._

"Daisy's pregnant?! Does Sweets know?"

"No, I mean, it's not Miss Wick. Different Daisy. College Daisy." _Way to dig a hole, Brennan. _Angela was enjoying this squirming. _As if I haven't worked it out already. Captain America and his super swimmers - that was quick work. Impressive, Booth. Try not to get too overexcited..._

Keeping as much control in her voice as she could, Angela tried not to burst out laughing, or squeal.

"Honey, I told Cam at about twelve weeks, after the first scan. Morning sickness a problem for your friend?"

"Yes. She works outdoors a lot."

"Well, she should go find the nearest bush or tree if the nausea gets too much and she doesn't have any travel-sick bags. At least it's bio-degradable."

"That could compromi-" There was a sudden stop followed by a change in tone as Angela heard Brennan cough and then correct herself. "OK, I'll tell her."

_Gotcha_.

"So, anything else I can help you with?"

There was another long pause. Angela waited for her friend's next move.

"How's Michael Vincent...?"

* * *

Booth sat at his kitchen breakfast bar that night, watching his girlfriend intently as she read the National Geographic, legs curled under her on his sofa, periodically sipping more herbal tea.

"You're watching me again, Booth. I can see you out of my peripheral vision."

"Actually I'm studying you."

"Studying me?"

"Like an anthropologist."

"Oh really...?" This I have to hear.

"I'm studying the social behaviours of the lesser spotted scientist with child. Newtonia gravida."

"Ha ha, Booth, I am impressed with your quite reasonable attempt at Latin, but Newton was a physicist. Also your binomial nomenclature is slightly incorrect."

"Yeah but Newton was a scientist. Come on Bones, cut me some slack here. I think it was a good one." Booth slipped off his stool and came to sit down next to Brennan, who shifted up slightly to accommodate him. "Honestly? I don't want to sound like a stalker but I just like looking at you. You're pretty as a picture."

"You're right, you sound like a stalker, but I appreciate your complement." she chuckled. Brennan put her hand on Booth's thigh. Her face took on a more serious expression.

"I have to tell you something. I am still concerned about my morning sickness impeding my efficiency at crime scenes. I called Angela to ask her about when she told Cam she was pregnant. I can't be certain but despite my subterfuge that I was asking for an old college friend, I believe she may have a suspicion."

"But you don't have any old college friends."

"I do, I just don't see them very often."

Booth sighed almost imperceptibly and put his hand over hers.

"OK. She probably knows. Angela's 'us' radar is probably beeping right now. She has this weird sixth sense about this kinda thing."

"But what what goes on between us is ours, Booth."

"Hey, look, it's not the end of the world. She can be discreet... on a good day. She's been discreet about us so far, hasn't she?"

"I guess. Technically she hasn't told me me she knows."

"The scientist, guessing? Don't worry about it."

"I just want us to enjoy our time alone."

"And we do. What time is it?"

"About Nine-Thirty."

"Early night?" Booth winked at Brennan. "I can show you what else can go on between us." With that, he got up and took her hand to pull him up with him. He kissed her slowly and very deliberately and she fairly soon had a definite idea of what he was talking about.

"Early night..."

* * *

**Constructive and positive reviews are manna, thank you!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Well, this chapter was a hell of a lot easier to write than the last!**

**Thanks again for all the faves, follows and especially reviews - PLEASE keep them coming, they are really appreciated. A shout out to Jenny1701 who has written a number of very detailed observations and lovely things through the whole thing - thank you so much. **

**Realistically I think we probably have 2-3 chapters left in the tank after this one.**

**I don't own Bones. Just my imagination.**

* * *

Seven-thirty on a Saturday morning. An off-duty FBI agent and his forensic anthropologist were taking advantage of the weekend to have a well-deserved lie-in after a busy week. A body found in a drain and Miss Wick as _Squint of Week_ had left the partners quite exhausted; and the smell had presented a particular challenge to Brennan in her current circumstance. Still, case solved and here they were in their their favourite spot - snuggled in bed like spoons in a drawer. They were half-awake, Booth's hand drawing lazy circles over Brennan's belly as she dozed, in the gentle reflection from her window, he could see a serene expression gracing her features.

They were disturbed by a loud rap on the door. Booth bolted upright.

"You expecting anyone?"

"Hmmmmm...no... Booth, come back. That was nice..." Brennan mumbled over her shoulder as Booth grabbed the nearest thing to hand, which was her bathrobe (_oh, now there was some déjà vu_) and headed for the door. He looked through the peephole expecting a delivery boy on the other side; and then, for a split second, Cam and Jared, but it wasn't any of them. He recognised the face staring blankly ahead though, and prepared himself.

"Max? What are you doing here so early?"

"I could ask you the same thing, Seeley, especially as you appear to be wearing my daughter's robe." Max raised an eyebrow.

Booth's mouth opened and closed like a goldfish but nothing but a silent mixture of mainly nitrogen, oxygen and carbon dioxide came out.

"I'm guessing that if I walked into Tempie's spare room right now, the bed would be untouched... I knew it!" Max clapped his hands together. "I knew it when we were in the diner that day... And at the alley - you may have been in costume but you sure weren't faking!"

"Faking what, Dad?" Brennan wandered into her kitchen in a tank top and yoga pants to see her father sporting a wide grin and her - whatever Booth was - she still hadn't decided on the best word - boyfriend...? lover...? mate...? partner...? - anyway, _significant other_ standing very awkwardly in front of him.

"You and Seeley - you finally gave in to your feelings! This is great, it really is." Max smiled warmly at his daughter, allowing Booth to relax slightly and he stepped across to Brennan. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder and she naturally leaned into him and wrapped her own arm around his waist.

"Yes, it is." Brennan said simply, and gazed briefly at Booth, who gave her a thousand-watt smile. "...And there's more, Dad." Max looked at them both in anticipation.

"-We're having a baby!" Booth blurted out, the first thing he had spoken since Max had walked through the front door.

"Wow! I'm going to be a grandpa? Russ's girls are great but this... I'm going to be there right from the beginning. So how far...?"

"About ten weeks."

"Oh Tempie. I am so proud of you."

"Dad, I'm not sure how Booth and I making l-" Booth clamped his hand over Brennan's mouth.

"-Not appropriate Bones!"

"I meant that you've got your act together. This is a good guy" he said, gesturing at Booth, "and you deserve a good guy."

"Thanks Max. I was expecting more the 'hurt my daughter and I'll kill you' speech" chuckled Booth.

"Oh that applies, but I don't have to tell you that. You're a smart guy. You just told me." Max winked. "Now, are you guys going to offer me some coffee? And Seeley, please change out of that robe. You're creeping me out there..."

* * *

"Cullen"

- "Sir, I have Special Agent Booth on line three."

"Put him through."

- "Yes Sir."

"Special Agent Booth. If it isn't my favourite Homicide agent."

- "How are you Sir?"

"Wasting energy on strategic paperwork mostly. I hear you're still saving the world with that crazy partner of yours."

- "About that." Booth took a breath. "I wanted some advice."

He wasn't necessarily very close to his old boss, but Cullen was now somewhere in the stratosphere as far as the FBI was concerned. A couple more levels and he'd be J Edgar himself. After Brennan had helped Cullen get some justice for his dying daughter, he had held both her and their partnership in much higher esteem. He and Booth had stayed on good terms when Cullen had been promoted away from Homicide and although Booth was generally one for doing things by the book, he wanted senior backing before he approached Hacker. In fact, he'd prefer it if he could bypass Hacker altogether in terms of the logistics, although a part of him couldn't wait to see the _sonofabitch's_ face when he found out that the two if them were not only an item but were making beautiful babies as well.

"You didn't finally give her a gun, did you?"

- "No Sir. I was wondering..." He hesitated, "...What current policy is on relationships between FBI staff and consultants?" It came out almost strangled.

"Define 'relationship', Booth."

"Um... Pregnant girlfriend?" Might as well get it out there.

"Holy Shit, Booth! You don't do things by half, do you? I assume it is Brennan we're talking about." Cullen sighed resignedly.

- "Yes Sir."

"How far gone?"

- "Nearly three months."

"And now you want to know if you can still partner up?"

- "Yes."

"Okay. Official line is 'no fraternisation', in reality, but it's merely a deterrent. It happens all the time. Fact is, we thought you'd been at it for years, that's why we put you in couples' therapy."

- "Partners' Therapy." corrected Booth.

"**Couples' Therapy**." corrected Cullen.

- "Oh."

Cullen leaned back in his chair and wedged the phone into his shoulder as he fiddled about with the Newton's cradle on his desk.

"You'll have to continue to go to that of course, at least for the moment, although now the two of you seemed to have resolved whatever unfulfilled sexual crap you were playing at so maybe that can end after a review period. I would also suggest avoiding acting like lovesick teenagers at any crime scenes and during working hours generally... Look, your solve rate is hard to argue against, we'd be crazy to split you up. She needs to stay away from anything dangerous though, I don't want the department sued if something goes wrong. You need to liaise with Doctor Saroyan on that one and I want to see the paperwork."

- "Yes Sir. Thank you."

"I'll let Andrew Hacker know the situation and tell him to leave you alone, providing you stick to the rules."

-"Thank you." Booth fist-pumped in the air, glad Cullen couldn't see him.

"So you both finally got your shit together, huh?"

- "Yes Sir."

"Someone's going to win a lot of money in that pool." Cullen actually laughed. "I'm slightly disappointed I'm not on the floor anymore..."

Booth smiled. He'd been right on both counts.

* * *

"Booth, where are we going?"

"We are celebrating and I wanted to take you somewhere special." They walked for about fifteen minutes, Booth virtually dragging Brennan along behind him at some points. Booth knew Brennan would be ecstatic about their partnership being kept intact and for what he considered an important moment in their relationship he wanted them to be somewhere meaningful.

"What's the hurry?"

"I have something I want to tell you."

Brennan was getting suspicious, and worried. They were on the Mall, not a million miles from where Booth had proposed to Hannah. Much as she completely and utterly loved him, marriage was definitely not on the table, not to mention that she didn't want him to propose in the same place he'd asked his ex-girlfriend. That would be weird. Not that she would even entertain the possibility, of course. Brennan was relieved when they ended up at the coffee cart, such as it was, closed up for the night. She wasn't sure _why_ she felt relieved.

"What are we doing here, Booth? The coffee cart is closed."

"This is our place Bones. I wanted to tell you this somewhere meaningful to us."

"Okay" Brennan responded, quite uncertainly. Booth sat her down on the nearest park bench and pulled her on to his lap.

"Booth!" That action was a little unexpected.

"So you know..." He stroked her hair, "...We are the centre..." He gazed into her eyes.

"...And the centre must hold..." Brennan responded immediately, like it was a mantra. Their mantra.

"So... I spoke with Cullen today."

"Cullen? Is he still even at the Bureau?"

"He's pretty near God status now. I spoke to him about us, Bones."

"Oh. I take it that it's good news on the basis that we are celebrating?"

"Yes. We can continue our partnership. Providing no funny business at work and you don't put yourself in any stupid situations."

"Good." She moved in to kiss him. He stopped her just short of reaching his lips.

"There's one more thing." Brennan looked at him quizzically. "We have to carry on seeing Sweets, at least for now."

"Oh. I suppose that's to be expected."

"I was thinking... Wanna have a little fun with Sweets?" Brennan grinned at Booth before swooping in to claim her kiss and Booth knew he had his answer.

* * *

**Reviews are really appreciated, thanks. :) **


	11. Chapter 11

**Hello, I hope everyone had a good week. Mine wasn't the best to be honest - tough week at work and then I picked up a bug towards the end that I'm only just back from, so I'm a day or so behind with my posting schedule. Then there was the little matter of what *exactly* to do with Sweets. I wanted it to be believable and stay as "in canon" as possible, it took me a while to work it out but I *hope* this works as plausible. I'm pretty pleased with how it worked out, i hope you guys are too. Remember, they are just winding him up. **

**Thanks to Threesquares for her help on this one, gave me the nudge I needed.**

* * *

Booth and Brennan sat in the office of Dr Lance Sweets, _wunderkind_ of the FBI Psychology Unit, waiting for the prodigy to arrive. Brennan fidgeted nervously.

"You ready, Bones?"

"Yes Booth. Just to say, I love you."

"I love you too. Just remember, if you feel your blood pressure rise or anything we can just stop and come clean."

"I'll be fine, Booth" and then were the smiles. Smiles which dropped as they heard Sweets open the door behind them.

_-o-_

_After Bones had kissed him on on the Mall, they had sat on the bench and formulated a plan. On his call with Cullen, Booth had quick-wittedly asked his old boss not to speak to Sweets; that he would do so himself, initially to give himself and Brennan some room to manoeuvre, rather than an outright plan of revenge. When they'd discussed it though, the partners had agreed on how everything would take shape and had even shaken on it formally._

_"...Do you think I can pull this out, Booth?"_

_"Pull this off, Bones; and yes, just treat it like you are undercover. You always pleasantly surprise me. You're a pretty good actress."_

_"Thank you, I have become quite adept at getting into character."_

_As they sat, considering the idea of such deliciously naughty collusion that had just been plotted, they giggled like school children before their eyes and lips met for what soon turned into yet another mammoth make-out session, with arms tangling. They only realised where they were again when a cop wandered past and suggested they might want to get a room rather than scar the memories of the good people of DC._

_The plan was harsh but this was payback for the two weeks Brennan would never get back. They'd forgiven, but Booth in particular, had never quite been able to forget. He had trusted Sweets to inform Brennan he was safe and that trust had been betrayed._

-o-

"So, Dr Brennan, Special Agent Booth, you asked to see me."

"Yes Dr Sweets, we appear to have a problem." Sweets looked slightly nervous as Booth used Sweets' full title and glared at Brennan whilst he spoke. Brennan just shrugged her shoulders in response.

"I'm pregnant."

"Oh... _Oh!_ Is this from Booth's sperm donation?"

"Yes." _In a manner of speaking_. Brennan and Booth avoided eye contact and Brennan bit the inside of her lip to stop herself smirking.

"Oh, so should I be congratulating you?"

Booth jumped in before Brennan could speak:

"No!"

"I take it that Agent Booth, you're unhappy about Dr Brennan using your sperm."

"You'd better believe it!" Booth retorted angrily.

"Dr Brennan, did you think to ask Agent Booth if you could use his sperm?"

"He already said I could."

"That was TWO years ago! I thought I was going to die!"

"You already gave me permission!"

"Hey, hey, let's not turn this into a fully fledged argument." Sweets tried to calm them down with absolutely no success at all.

"Bones, this is ridiculous. You cannot use my stuff to make a baby."

"Rather late for that, Booth." Brennan was quite defiant and stuck her chin in the air.

"I am not letting you do this!"

"You have no further rights in this matter, Booth; you had agreed and the foetus is already developing."

They glared at each other, Booth looked like like steam was about to come out of his ears and Brennan was as aloof and as cold as he'd ever seen her as her most defensive. But yet, there was a spark. He couldn't quite put his finger on it, but If Sweets hadn't just seen them tearing a strip off each other, he could have sworn they'd were about find the nearest closet and rip each other's clothes off. Which is what the two of them were _really_ both imagining. For Sweets, however, still unaware of the material change in his clients' relationship, he had to be content with the apparent facts and his current perception that they appeared to be on the brink of wanting to kill each other.

Finally the silence was broken by Booth.

"I am so mad right now! You know what, Bones? You can sort this out with Sweets! I'm outta here." And with that, he stormed out of the room and slammed the door behind him, breaking into a wide grin the moment he was down the corridor and way from Sweets' office. _Go Bones, do your thing, Sweetheart..._

Brennan thought of the saddest thing she could to squeeze a couple of tears out.

"Dr Brennan, are you OK?"

"Yes" she squeaked out. "It's just..." She sniffed.

"Dr Brennan?"

"I can't do this with Booth so close. I rejected him, he's moved on. So I'm taking the baby after it's born and moving. I can get an excellent role at the British Museum in London or the National Museum in Berlin with no difficulty. I am one of the finest forensic anthropologists in the world, possibly _the_ finest, in fact."

Sweets panicked. This was al his fault. He shouldn't have pushed Booth on that fateful evening. Now Booth would be devastated. Brennan would leave and the FBI would lose their best team.

* * *

"So what happened next?" asked Booth as he took Brennan's coat off her shoulders and hung it up on the coat stand in his apartment. The rain had started to fall heavily outside and she'd missed the worst of it.

"He said that I'd been sublimating my attraction to you and I was using getting pregnant as a means to be closer to you."

"And...?"

"It would kill you if I took the baby and left the country, which was apparently the exact opposite of what I actually wanted. Which is technically true of course." She looked up at him from through the doorway into the next room and winked as she rummaged through her bag for some papers and a pen.

"And...?"

"Exactly as planned, I told him I couldn't risk letting you in after that night I'd rejected you. It was too late."

"Good girl. So he thinks you're leaving and I'm going to be heartbroken?"

"Yes... Booth, it was kinda fun pranking Sweets. How long do you think we should keep this going for?"

"At least a week. He can stew a little."

"The fighting was a turn on." Brennan had wandered back into the room where Booth stood.

"Yeah. You wanna do something about that?" Booth's voice dropped to an octave around sultry.

"That would be..." Brennan grinned and walked over to Booth "-acceptable." She stopped all of a foot away and looked at him like much like a lion would look at a deer.

"Just acceptable?" Booth gave as good as he got, narrowed his eyes and suddenly he was stalking her. Brennan stood her ground as he closed the gap and they stood, nose to nose.

"-Very acceptable. Better?"

"Yeah, I think so." And with that Booth wrapped his arms around her. She dropped her pan and paper and she'd forgotten what it was she wanted to write down, anyway. As their lips touched and their mouths opened to each other, somewhere nearby a lightning bolt struck a lightening conductor on a building.

* * *

A couple of days later, Brennan was just coming into the Hoover Building on her way to bring Booth some lunch. He was surrounded by paperwork and she'd felt like a break from the bones laid out on the platform not giving her any new answers for several hours. When Booth called to vent a little, she'd volunteered to bring him over some food - getting regular fresh air was higher on her list of priorities these days. As she clutched the brown paper bag, walking through the bull pen, she was nearly flattened by Booth's boss, the buffoonish and somewhat clumsy Andrew Hacker barrelling through the other way. He almost knocked her backwards but her centre of gravity was still within her expected norms and she just maintained her balance.

..._And this is a reason I could never choose you over Booth_ she thought to herself, her thoughts briefly drifting to Booth's quite beautiful physique and excellent hand-eye coordination. She brought herself back to reality quickly because that thought became x-rated almost immediately.

"Hi, Temperance! I am so sorry. How are you."

"Hello Andrew. I am well, thank you."

"So, I haven't seen you for quite sometime."

"No, I've been busy."

"It's nice to see you Temperance."

"You too, Andrew." Se smiled politely as she began to continue towards Booth's office. Hacker called after her.

"Whilst you're here, Temperance, I wondered if you were free for dinner sometime? It's been a while."

"Actually Andrew, I'm seeing someone." She automatically broke into a smile as she thought of Booth for the second time in as many minutes.

"It's serious, isn't it." If Hacker had one thing going for him, it was an ability to at least read people fairly well. The girl was seriously in love by the way her face had lit up. He had absolutely no chance.

"- As a heart attack." Booth appeared from seeming out of nowhere before Brennan could reply.

"Booth? Do you know the guy? You seem awfully relaxed about it." Hacker looked confused.

"He **_is_** the guy" declared Brennan, quite proudly (to Booth's surprise as well as Hacker's), snaking her arm around Booth's waist and kissing him firmly on the cheek. Booth beamed. It wasn't like they were exactly having sex in the office but this was clearly a public display of affection beyond anything in the least bit partnerly. The rest of the bull pen looked up leaving a few dropped jaws, at least two groans from guys who realised they'd just lost their stake in the pool and a whoop from Ginny Shaw who'd been rooting for them since she'd started working with them a few months before and had sussed out their clear attraction from the get-go.

"Have you not spoken to Sam Cullen yet?" Booth asked, his lips quirking upwards as his partner remained firmly attached to his side.

"No, I have no spoken to Director Cullen." Hacker looked positively flustered.

"He's cleared everything. You can check." With that, Booth and Brennan briefly gave each other one of "those" looks before turning to walk arm in arm back to Booth's office. He couldn't stop grinning.

"Bye Andrew, it was nice to see you" called Brennan over her shoulder.

"Bye Temperance..." was the most Hacker could muster before walking off in a daze towards the elevator.

"I think you just fulfilled one of my long-term fantasies, not to mention breaking the pool." He whispered in her ear before ushering her through the door to his office and shutting the door behind them.

"I know that as competing alpha males, getting a score over Andrew Hacker would be meaningful to you and as I love you, I was happy to entertain your macho tendencies. Just this once, anyway." She smiled at his still beaming face. "There is one thing though..."

"I know, secret's out."

"Secret's out."

"Sweets is going to find out sooner than a week."

"Let him..."

* * *

**Reviews are seriously cherished :) Thank you in advance.**


	12. Chapter 12

**Hello! I am SO sorry, HUGE delay in posting. Excuses include:**

**(a) Work being wicked busy - calls to the US until 9pm, logging into work until 10 or 11pm most nights.**

**(b) My husband's birthday (planning, BBQ, secret surprise trip to the cricket)**

**(c) The biggest problem. My muse upped and left after the season finale. Seriously, she just watched the last scene and buggered off with a barely a word of goodbye. Left me heartbroken and I've spent almost a month trying to call her back with fanvids, old FF, new FF and early episodes reeking with UST. She's back in the building, hiding behind a sofa and refusing to come out but I'm hopeful that this small chapter might get her back in the game.**

* * *

"Lancelot...? Lance?" Daisy called out into the empty space of Sweets' office. His computer was locked, his desk tidy and the psychologist was nowhere to be seen. Daisy wandered off, somewhat confused. She'd planned to surprise him and he was *always* in his office at this time on a Wednesday. It had become something of a ritual over the last few months. Besides, she had news to share. Big news. Disappointed, Daisy trudged back down the hall.

Somewhere on the other side of town, Lance was sitting in the kitchen of retired psychiatrist and now cordon-bleu chef, Gordon Wyatt. He drummed his pen randomly on his mentor's desk, tapping out what sounded like morse code, if only it had made any real sense. Gordon Gordon watched Sweets for several moments, trying to give his former charge some time to collect his thoughts. However, Wyatt soon realised that Sweets was deeply troubled and would not be calmed through his own volition. He decided to help the young man on his way.

"May I get you something to eat?"

"No, thank you."

"Are you sure? I have some rather exquisite scallops with crisped bacon on a bed of minted pea and shallot puree. I can have them ready for you in five minutes with the mere flourish of my hand and the sterling efforts of my sous chef."

There was no reaction. Only a long and wistful look into the distance and a long sigh. Wyatt sat down in front of him and smiled sympathetically.

"Doctor Sweets, what troubles you?" Sweets took a breath.

"Dr Brennan is pregnant with Agent Booth's child."

"Goodness me. And that upsets you? But that is wonderful news."

"They are not together, not sexually anyway. She finally used his sperm in anger, without asking him. Booth is furious, Dr. Brennan wants to leave the country and somehow I feel entirely responsible."

"Why would you feel that way?"

"I think I may have exacerbated the problem further."

"And why do you think that?"

"There were the X-rays, the seed of doubt I put in Booth's mind..."

"...And what makes you think you have that much influence over Booth? Tell me about your sense of worth."

"Well..." Sweets paused... "- Are you using psychiatry on me, Dr Wyatt?"

"But of course."

"At least you're honest."

"I like to think so..."

* * *

Over at the lab there was much excitement and gossip amongst the Interns. It had taken less than a day for news to filter through from the Hoover building regarding Booth and Brennan's quite public disclosure of their relationship. The partners were nowhere to be seen but that hadn't stopped money changing hands. Wendell had taken a tidy sum from Fisher, Aristoo and Clarke and Cam was patiently waiting to hear formally from Brennan, although she didn't have a clue what else was pending in her Brennan in-tray.

"Thank God. Finally." said Clarke. "It's almost worth the pain of handing this fifty over to see them together. I am looking forward to that moment when they walk in, drop everything and make out like teens under a bleacher."

"I'm so pleased." Wendell smiled. "I almost thought it would never happen."

"Hey," Aristoo nodded his head over towards the door as Brennan approached, very much alone. "What do we do? Cheer? Applaud? Say nothing?"

"Say nothing about what?" asked Brennan. Her hearing was rather too excellent.

"Um... can we say congratulations?" Wendell grinned.

"About what?" Brennan looked him quizzically, then at the other interns.

"You and Special Agent Booth. We heard you are together now. Like, _together_ together," Aristoo shifted uncomfortably.

"Finally' muttered Clarke under his breath, but a little too loudly. Brennan frowned.

"Yes, that's correct. I guess news travels fast along the grapefruit. Now don't you all have work to do?"

"Yes, Dr Brennan." _Grapefruit_? "We're all very pleased for you both."

Brennan allowed herself a smile. "Thank you, Gentlemen."

* * *

Brennan headed towards Cam's office, pausing at the door to clear her throat.

"Dr Saroyan, can I speak to you for a moment please?"

"Of course, Dr Brennan."

"It's personal... and professional."

"Oh. I see. Would you like to shut the door?" There was an awkward pause.

"So Booth and I... have consummated our partnership. We are no longer partners only in the professional sense." Cam tried to look surprised.

"That's great news, Dr Brennan. I am very happy for you both. May I hug you?"

"That's acceptable, but before you do, there's more. Cam...?" Brennan actually looked a little nervous. Cam looked expectantly at her, really not knowing what was coming next.

"Booth and I... we are... I mean... I am... pregnant." It was a good job that her office door was shut as Cam did her best Angela impression and squealed. Just a small squeal but enough for Brennan to roll her eyes and smile.

"Oh my God! How far?"

"About ten weeks." I'm not going public with it until the first scan but I figured that as I will need to take some time away from the office I should let you know sooner rather than later. Booth and I have been very discrete with our relationship change but this morning at the Hoover, I was a little public with Booth in front of Andrew Hacker and I understand that the news has travelled rather quickly. I would appreciate your discretion on my pregnancy please for the time being. My publicist will handle the press release and I'll tell everyone relevant in the next couple of weeks."

"Of course." Cam clapped her hands together. "This really is good news. I guess you can go back to work now?"

"Absolutely."

* * *

**Well, it's not a lot, but it is a foot back into the story.**

**Reviews are nice. The Muse needs a bit of a lift... thank you.**


	13. Chapter 13

**Hello. *Hangs head in shame***

**Yes, I know, it's been over 3 months. Life has a funny way of getting in the way. It's been a busy time for my family and I - mostly good with work, holidays and gigs, sometimes a little scary (my husband had a DVT a couple of weeks ago, found very early - but having had a full-blown embolism 10 years ago the doctors have been keeping him under close observation.) Unfortunately my muse didn't play ball after the last painfully slow chapter and it's taken me several attempts to get up what will be the last chapter.**

**I'd like to thank everyone who's read, favourited, followed and reviewed throughout this story. It really does make a difference to many of the writers when you do that. It's heartening to see one's story hit 40,000 views!**

**So, this last chapter. I've left it pretty open but closed off the catharsis I needed, which was for Sweets to finally apologise for being such a dick. I'm like a dog with a bone with certain things so this has helped me move on and love Sweets a little more on the actual show. I will also give myself a shameless plug for my (very soft) M one-shot called "In the Darkness" which is an early season 7 piece and follows on nicely from this.**

**I am very excited about season 9. I've been following the spoilers (though to stress, none right here) and it sounds like we have some fabulous episodes coming up!**

**Finally, now this is finally completed, I do have some one-shots coming up. I have a plan, but I need to be able to write some stuff that doesn't require som much continuity. It's unfair to anyone who has been reading my stories to make you wait so long (I know what I'm like with the ones I like) so this will hopefully keep me writing Bones FF in a way that it doesn't become a chore. Watch this space!**

* * *

A Miles Davis CD played quietly in the background of Brennan's living room and the lights were dimmed. Two empty plates previously held vegetarian lasagne, but now just the remnants of a well-eaten meal and two wine glasses remained, one with the last drops of a strong Californian Merlot and the other, grape juice. A few inches away Booth and Brennan were busily doing nothing, bodies wedged into the sofa as the pair of sparkling blue eyes grinned at the chocolate brown eyes smiling so lovingly back down at them, their eyes locked to each other. Booth stroked her hair with his left hand as Brennan caressed his nape of his neck for a while before moving her hand to his cheek, enjoying the feel of his 9pm shadow against her fingertips, as Booth's right arm propped him up so not to entirely squash her and their precious cargo.

"You look so happy... and relaxed. What are you thinking about?" Booth asked as he ran his fingers gently through her hair.

"Nothing really. Just enjoying this." She slowed her cheek-stroking movements a little and considered him carefully. "The interns were amusing today, they didn't know what to say to me. I think they were disappointed you weren't with me and we didn't give them some sort of pornographic show as we entered the lab. " They both chuckled.

"Well, they will continue to be disappointed because I am not sharing your delicious body with _anyone_."

"Delicious, huh?"

"Yeah. Like strawberries and cream..." at which point Booth gave Brennan a penetrating gaze and she moaned gently as he put his mouth to hers, keen to deepen their connection further, just making out with no specific goal other than a higher level of general intimacy between them, until he was aware that parts of his own body had definitely not got the memo and had regressed to horny teenager mode.

Brennan absorbed the overwhelming feelings washing over her again. She could get very used to this set of endorphins currently rushing through her body. It was not hard at all. Unlike a part of him she was going to have to act on pretty soon, which appeared to be defeating Booth's own brief. Brennan briefly pulled away and gave him a very dirty smile, but then then curiosity got the better of her and as they came close to kiss again and her hands just began to creep over his body, she stopped at his chest and mumbled:

"Did you see Sweets?"

"Nope." He leaned in, gently nuzzling his nose against hers, feeling her muscles curve upwards before gently kissing his lips again. Booth whispered against her mouth. "He's gone to ground. I think we really freaked him out." Brennan pulled back slightly and her mouth straightened.

"Do you think we should do anything?"

This time Booth's voice was a little firmer.

"Absolutely not. Let him stew. Two weeks he left you grief-stricken and I never really realised at the time how damaging that was, and then there was the subsequent "advice" he gave me. Just for a little while, he can feel uncomfortable. Besides, the rate this news is travelling, he'll find out within the next twelve hours. If the other interns know, then Daisy knows, which means the entire metropolitan DC area will know by the end of the week." Booth's voice lowered. "Now c'mon Bones, don't spoil the mood." He cracked a smile and brought his lips to hers again to give Brennan a kiss that brought on total Sweets-related amnesia.

* * *

Sure enough, it only took Sweets a few hours to find out about his favourite clients. With the steely determination that in another life would have made Daisy Wick a formidable Canadian Mountie, she tracked down her man to tell him the good news.

"Lance! I am so glad I finally found you. Did you hear?"

"Hear what?"

"About Agent Booth and Doctor Brennan!" Daisy bounced about excitedly. As she relayed the biggest news story of the year, Sweets face showed a range of emotions:

Shocked.

Happy.

Shocked.

Utterly deflated...

...as he realised what had gone down a couple of days previously. But why...? He was their friend. Why would they do this to him?

* * *

Brennan sat in her publicist's office, starting at the press release in front of her, to be issued as soon as Brennan had confirmed their twelve week scan had gone as expected and there were no complications. It was short and to the point but, as the overexcited publicist, Marsha, told her gleefully:

"This is dynamite! This is going to sell you a LOT of extra books, Temperance. The speculation around Andy and Kathy being a fictionalised version of yourself and Agent Booth- " ...but Brennan was quick to interject, slightly irritably:

"- They are not a fictionalised account. The characters are just similar."

The publicist smiled wryly before wandering over to the coffee machine to give her client a moment to herself.

"Of course they are..." Marsha uttered under her breath.

************************************************** ********  
For Immediate Release:

Dr Temperance Brennan, author of the very successful series of Kathy Reichs novels, is very pleased to announce that she and her partner, FBI Special Agent Seeley Booth, are expecting their first child in the New Year.

All enquires via Dr Brennan's press office at Lancaster Books.

End.  
************************************************** ********

Well, that's pretty public... Brennan sighed to herself. Then she smiled. It wasn't so terrible and she could just brace herself for the likely initial rush of interest from the publishing community and her fans before the excitement died down again.

"So Temperance, what do you think?" Marsha grinned at her client as she returned with two cups, one containing Brennan's herbal tea and another with a steaming cup of black coffee.

"It's fine, thank you Marsha."

"There may be a need for a follow-up press conference. We'll have to keep a check on press interest over the next couple of months, but you may want to consider it to avoid any gossip inches."

Resignedly, Brennan sighed again.

* * *

"So, how was your visit to the publicist, Bones?" As Brennan down sat in the diner in their usual spot. Booth stirred his coffee slowly, glancing up to watch her as Brennan settled in her seat.

"I believe it went well. Marsha has prepared an appropriate press release. Although, once again she is convinced that you are Andy and I am Kathy."

"Can't hide the truth, Bones." Booth gave Brennan a thousand-watt grin and winked. Brennan rolled her eyes.

"Any new cases?" she said, trying to change the subject.

"Nope. Just some paperwork to finish up on the last one. Hacker wants additional witness statements. You know, I really like Marsha." Booth's mischievous grin reappeared. "I wonder if she'd like any publicity photos of the two of us dressed up as Andy and Kathy..."

"Booth..." Brennan gave him a warning stare. He pouted at her and they both broke into fits of giggles, only to stop suddenly as a perturbed Lance Sweets loomed over their table.

"Agent Booth? Doctor Brennan?"

"That's Special Agent Booth, thank you."

"Well I don't think you're very 'special' right now. Or you..." Sweets looked over at Brennan, who looked back a little guiltily at him.

"Oh really?" snorted Booth, dismissive in his retort.

"Yeah. What kind of friends are you? You're together, you're having a baby and I'm the last to know - congratulations by the way." Sweets broke off earnestly for a moment before reassuming his sterner demeanour. "After all the time we've spent together? And then you lied to me!" He looked thoroughly irritated.

Booth looked up at Sweets.

"Well, next time you remember give one of the two most important people in my life the details that I'm NOT dead as opposed to carrying out 'a small experiment' on her, leaving her devastated, and then don't tell me I'm not really in love with the woman I'm really in love with and lose us eighteen months of potential happiness together - then I'll think about sharing our good news with you a little quicker."

"Oh." An awkward pause. "That."

"Yes Sweets, that."

"But I apologised - for Dr Brennan."

"Yeah, but that was only because you didn't want to get your butt kicked."

"But the scans - I told you in good faith! I was trying to help!"

"But you were WRONG Sweets. We were already in love. We just didn't know it yet."

"Psychology is a soft science..." Brennan said flatly. "Plenty of room for incorrect hypotheses."

"Okay, okay. I've learned my lesson. I'm sorry, okay? Genuinely sorry! I meant no malice."

Booth and Brennan shared a glance.

"So what do you think Bones, should we let him sit?"

"Hmmmm. I don't know Booth."

"I won't get in your way again!" Sweets interjected, sounding almost desperate.

Booth smiled at Brennan who nodded back at her partner, and Booth finally ushered him to sit down.

"I think you've learned your lesson..."

...And with that, the threesome sat down and discussed the case of the day.

* * *

**And *that*, ladies and gentlemen, is that.**

**Constructive reviews are welcomed and appreciated. Thank you in advance, grc73. **


End file.
